In yet another attempt to break into the healthcare sector, Amazon announced its virtual healthcare marketplace, Amazon Clinic, which can treat patients for cough, cold or flu.
Customers can now select the new “Cough, cold, and flu” option from the “Find a treatment” list on Amazon Clinic on desktop or mobile. From there, they can look at a list of available telehealth providers and compare pricing and response times.
Once users have filled out the form detailing their current symptoms and basic health history, they will be connected to a licensed clinician either through a secure messaging portal or a video call. The clinician will then provide treatment, which could include a prescription that can be filled by Amazon Pharmacy or another pharmacy.
“With conditions like the flu, getting treatment quickly after the onset of symptoms really matters,” said Dr Nworah Ayogu, chief medical officer and general manager of Amazon Clinic in a blog post.
“By quickly connecting with a provider who understands their condition, customers can explore options for relief and get the care that’s right for them in a matter of minutes or hours, not days or weeks.”
Amazon Clinic is a way to connect users with healthcare providers. Amazon Clinic does not provide the healthcare services itself and instead supplies a platform to connect telemedicine partners with users.
Amazon has been trying to break into the healthcare industry for years. The online retail giant launched and then shut down a telehealth service called Amazon Care last year. Amazon also closed its $3.9 billion acquisition of healthcare provider OneMedical earlier this year. Plus, the company launched Amazon Pharmacy off the back of its acquisition of PillPack.
In 2018, it formed a JV with JP Morgan and Berkshire Hathaway to build an employee healthcare operation, appointing a high-profile doctor to lead it. That service never appeared to come together and the project shut down in 2021.
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