Telehealth Use Among Older Adults Receiving Home-and Community-Based Services - Abstract - igaf122.1194

Q: What was the main goal of the study?

To examine individual and structural factors associated with post-pandemic telehealth use among older recipients of publicly funded home-and community-based services (HCBS).

Q: Which older adults were included in the analysis?

The analytic sample included 3,680 HCBS users aged 65+ without intellectual or developmental disability, with 40% using telehealth.

Q: What factors were strongly associated with telehealth use?

Lower odds were linked to older age, male gender, Black race, non-metropolitan residence, and receipt of Older Americans Act services; home internet access was strongly associated with telehealth use.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by OmBimo

Telehealth enabled care continuity during the COVID-19 pandemic and has since been viewed as a way to reduce health disparities. Evidence on telehealth use among socially and financially vulnerable older adults remains limited. This cross-sectional study (2021–2022 National Core Indicators-Aging and Disability Adult Consumer Survey) analyzed 3,680 HCBS users aged 65+ and identified factors tied to post-pandemic telehealth use and home internet access.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

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Abstract

Context and objective

Data and methods

Key findings

Implications

Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 353 Abstract citation ID: igaf122.1194 TELEHEALTH USE AMONG OLDER ADULTS RECEIVING HOME-AND COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES Dana Urbanski1, Romil Parikh2, Jack Wolf2, Benjamin Langworthy2, Chanee Fabius3, Janette Dill2, Eric Jutkowitz4, and Tetyana Shippee4, 1. Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana, United States, 2. University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, 3. Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 4. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States Telehealth was essential for maintaining care continuity during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to its rapid expansion and adoption in the United States. Since then, telehealth has been increasingly viewed as a strategy to reduce health disparities among vulnerable populations. However, data on telehealth use among socially and financially vulnerable older adults are limited, leaving unanswered questions about the role of telehealth in promoting health equity for older Americans. This study examined individual and structural factors associated with post-pandemic telehealth use among older recipients of publicly funded home-and community-based services (HCBS; an indicator of social and financial vulnerability) . Using cross-sectional data from the 2021–2022 National Core Indicators-Aging and Disability Adult Consumer Survey, the analytic sample included 3,680 HCBS users aged ≥ 65 years without intellectual or developmental disability, 40% of whom used telehealth. Complete-case multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for sociodemographic and health-related factors with state-level random intercepts, revealed significantly lower odds of telehealth use associated with older age, male gender, Black race, non-metropolitan residence, and receipt of Older Americans Act services. Individuals with dementia had higher odds of telehealth use (OR, 1.33, p < .05) . Home internet access was strongly associated with telehealth use (OR, 2.51, p < .001) . Follow-up bivariate analyses showed younger age, female gender, and White race were associated with higher internet access. These findings highlight differences intelehealth use among older HCBS users associated with both individual and structural factors, offering valuable insights for efforts aimed at addressing barriers to telehealth adoption among vulnerable older adults.

FAQs

What was the main goal of the study?

To examine individual and structural factors associated with post-pandemic telehealth use among older recipients of publicly funded home-and community-based services (HCBS).

Which older adults were included in the analysis?

The analytic sample included 3,680 HCBS users aged 65+ without intellectual or developmental disability, with 40% using telehealth.

What factors were strongly associated with telehealth use?

Lower odds were linked to older age, male gender, Black race, non-metropolitan residence, and receipt of Older Americans Act services; home internet access was strongly associated with telehealth use.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by OmBimo