Chronic Illness Burden Regular Healthcare Providers and Telehealth Use among African American and Latino Public Housing Residents

Abstract Background Access to an established healthcare provider may help explain differences in telehealth use among residents of public housing. Objective As a continuation of Cobb et al. (2025), this study used the same survey dataset to examine whether having a regular healthcare provider may account for the association between chronic illness burden and telehealth use. Methods This cross-sectional analysis included 252 African American and Latino adults living in four public housing developments in South Los Angeles. A structural equation model examined associations among chronic illness burden, regular provider status, and telehealth use, accounting for age, gender, education, and language. Results Chronic illness burden was positively associated with having a regular provider (B = 0.158, p = 0.015), and regular provider status was positively associated with telehealth use (B = 0.145, p = 0.016). The adjusted direct association between chronic illness burden and telehealth use was not statistically significant (B = 0.094, p = 0.141). Conclusion The observed associations are consistent with a possible pathway through access to a regular provider. They do not establish mediation or causal direction. Improving access to ongoing care may be relevant to efforts to support telehealth use in this population.