2025 Patient Consumer Survey

To catch the pulse of healthcare consumers, JLL conducted a national survey of over 4,000 respondents to understand how location and real estate plays into a patient’s decision of where to seek care and their overall experience. The survey uncovered four key insights:

Without insurance, patients are much less likely to receive care

While the majority of respondents who did not receive care said they chose not to get medical care because they had no health concerns (75%), 16% of respondents said they could not afford healthcare. Insurance is a major predictor of access to care—67% of those without insurance did not receive care. Althought it is possible that many of those who are uninsured don’t pay for it because they feel generally healthy, it means that this segment of the population misses preventative screenings or does not have coverage in the event they experience a sudden medical emergency.

“Accepts my insurance” was the most common factor in the top five for all care categories

Over 79% of people evaluating primary/preventative or specialist care placed “accepts my insurance” as one of the top five factors. This percentage was slightly lower for immediate needs such as urgent care and emergency care and less routine visits such as inpatient care or surgery.

Concerns about health coverage are high

Recent policy changes and upcoming federal budget discussions are expected to reduce healthcare coverage. Coverage losses will put significant financial strain on health systems, as those without coverage will still need emergency care, and deferred preventative care could lead to worsening health outcomes, so patients might be in more critical shape. Additionally, for 2026 health plans, premiums are likely to increase as providers seek higher rates to offset losses from public plans and those who are uninsured.

To address decreased revenue and increased costs, use real estate strategically to expand footprint for high-value services and reduce operating expenses through strategic facilities management and energy efficiency.

Behind “accepts my insurance”, location/proximity was ranked in the top 5 for factors for choosing a provider more than any other items. This is consistent across all care types.

Use of urgent care increasing

From 2023 to 2025, survey participants who received urgent care in the last year increased by 240 bps to 27%. Patients who visit an urgent care often are referred for follow up or other treatment, so owning or partnering with an urgent care network can add referrals for a health system and become part of a broad outpatient care strategy.

Adding convenience to the patient journey

An illness, injury or recurring health condition often requires visits to multiple providers and specialists (not to mention pharmacies and labs).

Prioritize convenience and navigation to improve patient care and inform location strategy.

Digital communication is commonly used for communication and coordination

Technology is increasingly involved in the patient care experience, wheather a reminder to confirm an appointment to a patient portal to communicate lab results with a patient after receiving care. Only 9% of patients surveyed reported using no technology in their care experience. The majority of survey participants said they were more likely to choose a provider if they used technology.

Preferences on technology vary by care type — fewer consumers saw the use of technology as a factor impacting their decision when it comes to primary or specialist care, as these types are highly relational.

Telehealth use remains steady

Telehealth remains steady in usage but has not increased significantly from 2023 to 2025 with 43% of respondents having a telehealth visit in the last year.

The percentage of respondents that had ever had a telehealth visit increased gradually from our 2022 and 2023 surveys, with almost 70% of respondents having a telehealth visit today (vs. 60% in 2022). Satisfaction with telehealth remains high, with 73% of patients receiving telehealth in the last year saying that they prefer that method of care.

Identify ways to use technology to get the highest value and most efficient use out of facilities.

Quality of facilities affects choice for acute care such as inpatient, urgent and emergency needs

While quality of facilities is important across the board for patient consumers, a higher percentage ranked it as a factor in the top five when evaluating more acute types of care. Since patients stay longer than a typical doctor’s visit, their evaluation of what that facility will be like plays a larger part in the decision.

Quality service has the greatest impact on care

First impressions matter: service a patient received throughout the appointment, wait time and then waiting space showed the largest differences respectively between those with a positive and negative impression of their visit.

Acute care settings tend to have greater challenges with comfort and maintenance, but these are the types of care for which patients most highly consider facility quality.

Take a hospitality mindset when thinking about care settings—examine what a patient sees first and focus on maintenance over newness.

Download the full findings from our 2025 Patient Consumer Survey.