30/01/2024
To get started, customers select their condition, then choose their preferred provider from a list of licensed and qualified telehealth providers. Next, they complete a short intake questionnaire. Customers and clinicians then directly connect through a secure message-based portal, giving customers the flexibility to message their clinician when it’s most convenient for them—anytime, anywhere. After the message-based consultation, the clinician will send a personalized treatment plan via the portal, including any necessary prescriptions to the customer’s preferred pharmacy.
Unlike certain other aspects of its business model, Amazon has repeatedly made clear that it hopes healthcare will become a major component in its ever-widening expansion into consumers’ daily lives—from smart home systems, to entertainment, to even banking and finances. In 2018, Amazon acquired the online pharmacy startup, PillPack, ahead of the launch of Amazon Pharmacy, a service that allows consumers to buy over-the-counter and some prescription medications. The following year saw a limited test launch of its initial telehealth incarnation, Amazon Care, for its Seattle employees, while Amazon entered into a multibillion dollar deal with primary care provider, One Medical, earlier this year. If approved by the FTC, could soon see the retailer establishing brick-and-mortar healthcare locations.
Recent news regarding the sunsetting of Amazon Care led some to believe the company was reevaluating its medical industry aspirations, but today’s launch of Clinic could indicate more of a recalibration than hesitancy.