Patient portals and personal health information online: perception, access, and use by US adults

Background: Access to online patient portals is key to improving care, but we have limited understanding of patient perceptions of online portals and the characteristics of people who use them. Methods: Using a national survey of 3677 respondents, we describe perceptions and utilization of online personal health information (PHI) portals. Results: Most respondents (92%) considered online PHI access important, yet only 34% were offered access to online PHI by a health care provider, and just 28% accessed online PHI in the past year. While there were no differences across race or ethnicity in importance of access, black and Hispanic respondents were significantly less likely to be offered access (P = .006 and <.001, respectively) and less likely to access their online PHI (P = .041 and <.001, respectively) compared to white and non-Hispanic respondents. Conclusion: Health care providers are crucial to the adoption and use of online patient portals and should be encouraged to offer consistent access regardless of patient race and ethnicity.