Just a few months after announcing that it would be shutting down its telehealth program Amazon Care, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) says that it's introducing a new virtual healthcare service, Amazon Clinic.
The new program will allow patients to message clinicians about common medical needs, including birth control and prescriptions for allergies, urinary tract infections, acne, hair loss, and migraines.
In 32 states, patients will be able to contact third-party licensed clinicians via a secure messaging portal to get treatment. While the clinic doesn't accept insurance, the patient can use insurance to help cover the cost of prescriptions. Those prescriptions can be picked up at any pharmacy, including Amazon Pharmacy.
The service provides a list of common conditions that patients can choose from before choosing their preferred provider. Amazon said that if a patient's condition isn't covered by the clinic's services, it will let the patient know before contacting the clinician. After making their selections, patients will then complete a questionnaire and be connected with a clinician via secure messenger.
The cost of an initial consultation includes two weeks of follow-up messages from the clinician. According to Amazon, the cost of an Amazon Clinic consultation will often be equal to or less than the cost of the average copay, depending on the patient's location and chosen provider.
The tech giant made its first significant foray into the healthcare market when it paid $750 million for online pharmacy service PillPack in 2018. In 2019, the company launched its telehealth service Amazon Care as a pilot program for employees, providing virtual urgent care and in-home nurse visits.
In August of this year, the company announced that it would be shutting down Amazon Care by the end of 2022 as a part of its ongoing expansion into the healthcare sector. According to Amazon, its pilot program didn't offer "a complete enough offering for the large enterprise customers we have been targeting, and wasn't going to work long-term."
Amazon's investment in the healthcare space ramped up considerably this July with its $3.9 billion acquisition of telehealth company One Medical. When that deal closes, the company is expected to expand into brick-and-mortar healthcare services for the first time.
While Amazon says that it's working to make healthcare more accessible, critics of the program are more worried about privacy. Both regulators and lawmakers have expressed concerns over potential exposure of patients' sensitive information. In its defense, Amazon said that its virtual clinic will follow "stringent customer privacy policies and comply with HIPAA and all other applicable laws and regulations."