BOONEVILLE, Miss. (WTVA) -- As the economy reopens, some physicians are now allowing patients to come to their clinics for appointments instead of meeting over the phone.

However, one local physician said fewer patients are showing up for appointments since the start of the pandemic.

Why? Fear.

“She said, ‘I haven’t been out since I saw you last a couple of months ago.’ She’s afraid of it,” Dr. Clifton Cartwright recalled a patient saying.

Some of his patients admit they are afraid to leave their homes because of the coronavirus pandemic. This is causing fewer patients to show up for appointments

“We’re still slow,” Cartwright said. “We’re at maybe 50 percent, maybe a tiny bit less than that still.”

However, Cartwright said he added new protective measures to keep patients safe.

Along with social distancing, he asks all patients to wear a face mask. He also keeps patients separated.

“We can bring people in through our front door or through our side door, and we started to mandate that we do not have any patients meeting any other patients here. We want you to know you’re safe in our office.”

Cartwright asks non-patients to not come into the clinic with patients unless necessary.