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| Amazon launches a virtual medical clinic service |
On Tuesday, Amazon announced the launch of a new virtual medical clinic service to expand its healthcare offerings following its acquisition of One Medical.
Amazon Clinic services are designed to help patients with common medical conditions such as allergies, acne, and hair loss.
The service will allow patients in 32 states to send messages to doctors through a secure portal to search for treatments and prescriptions for common conditions, the company said in a statement.
Patients may look for contraceptives, urinary tract infections, dandruff, and migraines among many other options.
Amazon clarified that the service does not currently accept health insurance, but that customers can use the insurance to pay for medications prescribed by licensed doctors through the platform. The company added that prescriptions can be dropped off at any pharmacy except Amazon.
To use Amazon Clinic, customers select the condition they want to talk about and then select a provider. After completing the questionnaire, the doctor is contacted through a secure messaging portal to get an answer as per the client's convenience. If the condition is not suitable for the service to process, Amazon states that it will notify customers before contacting the service provider.
The two-week investigation is included in the cost of the initial consultation, the company said, adding that in many cases the cost will be at or below the average cost of the examination.
Notably, Amazon's virtual clinic comes three months after Amazon announced that it would shut down another telemedicine service, Amazon Care, by the end of the year. Launched in 2019 as a pilot program for employees, the program provides virtual emergency care and paid home visits by nurses for testing and vaccinations.
Neil Lindsey, president of health services for Amazon Care, said in an email announcing the closure that Amazon Care "has not yet been fully offered to the large enterprise customers we are targeting and will not be effective in the long term."
Amazon's healthcare program has raised concerns from some regulators and lawmakers about its use and protection of confidential information. In its announcement on Amazon Clinic, the company said it "has a strict privacy policy for customers and complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and all applicable laws and regulations."