Paying for Telemedicine After the Pandemic.

One of the major positive changes in care delivery during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is the surge in telemedicine use. Because telemedicine eliminates the risk of viral transmission during travel and in the clinical setting, it has been a valuable tool for maintaining patient access to care for health issues both related and not related to COVID-19. Sudden and substantial increases in the use of telemedicine during the pandemic occurred in Australia, Canada, and the US. At its peak in April 2020, telemedicine was responsible for 38% (5 786 315 of 16 672 010) of all ambulatory visits among Australia’s Medicare program,1 42% (2 138 940 of 5 109 843) of all ambulatory visits for individuals insured by a US commercial insurer,2 and 77% (3 194 107 of 4 161 582) of all ambulatory visits among people in Ontario, Canada. Since that peak there has been a decline in telemedicine use across the 3 nations, but use remains substantially higher than prepandemic levels. Many telemedicine visits were via telephone, making up 90% of the telemedicine visits in Canada and Australia. The surge in telemedicine was facilitated in part by changes in government policy that temporarily expanded what telemedicine services could be reimbursed. However, now countries must address the