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The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed how outpatient care is delivered in health care practices. To decrease the risk of transmitting the virus to either patients or health care workers within their practice, providers are deferring elective and preventive visits, such as annual physicals. When possible, they also are converting in-person visits to telemedicine visits. For their part, many patients are also avoiding visits because they do not want to leave their homes and become exposed. Also influencing both provider and patient behavior are local and state recommendations restricting travel and nonessential services.        
Source: The Commonwealth Fund: Publications - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Source Type: research