Patients' use of smartphone apps for health record access in 2019: A cross-sectional study

The 21st Century Cures Act has expanded patients' access to portals through smartphone applications (apps). To date, the prevalence of patient portal smartphone apps use is unclear, especially on a national scale.

Using the 2019 Health Information National Trends Survey, we assessed factors associated with patient portal adopters accessing their records through a smartphone app. Multivariable logistic regression models were conducted and we reported results using predicted probability.

Across a weighted sample of 75,324,288 respondents, 39 % reported using a smartphone app to access their health records. Adults with smartphone-only internet (40.0 %; 95 % CI: 35.4-33.3) were more likely to use a smartphone app compared to adults with home internet access (30.6 %; 95 % CI: 27.9-44.7).

Optimizing the implementation and delivery of patient portal content via smartphone apps may improve their reach to patients.