Amazon has expanded their “virtual health care marketplace” Amazon Clinic across the United States, supporting customers to access virtual consultations for more than 30 common health concerns through Amazon’s website or app.
Video visits are now supported nationwide, in addition to message-based consultations which are available in 34 states.
According to Amazon, the clinic “removes barriers by helping customers treat their everyday health concerns wherever they are”, enabling users to compare response times and prices from telehealth providers, before completing an intake form and connecting with their chosen provider. Amazon Clinic connects customers to licensed clinicians with reported 24/7 access, without requiring insurance, and without an appointment.
Customers will then be provided with a “recommended treatment plan, which may include a prescription”, with Amazon also offering “the flexibility of filling their medication at Amazon Pharmacy with free shipping”, or the option to collect from a local pharmacy.
Amazon has stated: “By creating a healthcare experience that is transparent and simple, we hope to make health care more accessible for all. We’re excited to bring Amazon Clinic to even more customers, and we’re working hard to make even more conditions available for treatment in the coming months.”
Last year, we covered Amazon’s acquisition of One Medical, signalling its move into the healthcare industry, at a cost of £3.25billion. We also looked at the 12 health tech start-ups selected to join Amazon Web Services’ first healthcare accelerator programme, providing access to technical, business and mentorship training.
In the UK context, we discussed what “good” looks like for virtual consultations from a technology, patient, NHS system and clinical perspective, with the help of a panel of experts in technology and healthcare. We also explored the way that trusts including Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, were harnessing the power of technology to offer virtual consultations to their patients.
