The retail giant is folding its nearly two-year-old Amazon Clinic business into Amazon One Medical, saying the move makes things easier for consumers accessing care.
Amazon is consolidating its healthcare services under one brand, bringing its on-demand virtual care offering together with its primary care platform.
Amazon Clinic, which launched nearly two years ago to give members access to virtual care visits for more than 30 non-acute health issues, is being rebranded as Amazon One Medical’s pay-per-visit telehealth service. The platform, available in every state, offers single-visit prices of $25 for a messaging visit or $49 for a virtual visit, alongside monthly and annual subscriptions.
“It’s simply too hard to get the medical care you need, when you need it, and affordably—long waits, high costs, and impersonal care make it unnecessarily difficult for many patients today,” Neil Lindsay, senior vice president of Amazon Health Services, said in a blog on the company’s website. “We’re focused on improving both the occasional and ongoing medical care experience.”
The announcement—coming on the same day that Walgreens announced plans to rid itself of VillageMD and close a significant number of pharmacies in the U.S.—gives the retail giant a more focused footprint in the increasingly volatile primary care market. And it gives health system and hospital leaders a clear model to compare or contrast their own direct-to-consumer strategies, particularly in telehealth.
The challenge for industry decision-makers is understanding where Amazon is competitive with traditional brick-and-order healthcare organizations, and why. Analysts have often said the retail giant could be a true disruptor in the space by offering more convenient access to care to consumers put off by the bloated hospital or clinic healthcare experience.
And yet Amazon has had as many misses as hits in the space, including the failed Haven and Amazon Care programs. Health system and hospital executives argue that primary care is a very difficult field in which to establish a foothold, particularly for organizations that focus on profit rather than long-term health and wellness.
Eric Wicklund is the associate content manager and senior editor for Innovation at HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Amazon Clinic launched nearly two years ago on the promise of giving members on-demand access to virtual care for variety of non-acute care concerns.
Company officials say the rebranding of the program to Amazon One Medical’s pay-per-visit telehealth service gives members more options to access care.
The move is the latest in the turbulent primary care market by disruptors trying—and often failing—to establish a sustainable (read:profitable) alternative to traditional health systems and hospitals.