Overview
- Populus Health Technologies released Virtual Care in America: The Populus Report, based on surveys of 1,281 patients, providers and pharma marketers.
- In the report, 76% of patients said virtual care makes accessing healthcare faster and easier, and 87% were completely or very satisfied with their last virtual visit.
- Providers reported improvements in follow-up appointment completion, medication adherence and chronic disease management among virtual care patients.
- The report flags the pre-visit waiting window as an underused moment for patient education.
The News
Princeton, New Jersey-based Populus Health Technologies, a virtual care media and technology company, released Virtual Care in America: The Populus Report in June 2026. It was developed with PM360, DHC Group and Researchscape International, and draws on responses from 1,093 patients, 125 healthcare providers and 63 pharma marketers.
On access, 76% of patients said virtual care makes care faster and easier to get, and 54% chose a virtual visit over an in-office one when both were offered. Patients also reported high comfort: 88% felt extremely or very safe using virtual care, and 86% were extremely or very comfortable discussing sensitive topics virtually. Among providers, 81% reported better follow-up appointment completion, 54% improved medication adherence and 51% better chronic disease management.
The report also argues for a single definition of virtual care that covers video, phone, text, email and patient portals. For pharma marketers, 78% said virtual care offers better or much better ROI than traditional digital health advertising, and 46% of patients said they would be interested in health information while they wait.
Industry Perspective
Virtual care has settled into a permanent part of U.S. healthcare after its pandemic surge, and the debate has shifted to where it adds the most value and how it should be paid for. Industry-sponsored surveys help track sentiment, but independent outcomes research remains the stronger evidence base.
Strategic Impact
As a company that sells media placements in virtual care settings, Populus has an interest in these findings. The report gives it a data asset for marketing talks, and readers should weigh the survey design and sponsorship when citing its numbers.
Source: Businesswire
