As physicians migrate to employed models and the healthcare industry consolidates, retail giant Amazon continues to double down on its focus on primary care and other physician specialties.
Amazon has 221 primary care offices in more than 20 markets. In February 2023, it finalized a $3.9 billion acquisition of virtual and in-person primary care company One Medical, which added more than 200 brick-and-mortar physicians offices and roughly 815,000 One Medical members.
The One Medical deal has already "changed the landscape" of healthcare and altered the way hospitals do business, health system leaders told Becker's.
"The acquisition of One Medical by Amazon should remove any lingering doubt that Amazon is serious about making a real and substantive move into healthcare as well as cementing the notion that any viable healthcare strategy must have at its foundation a robust primary care offering," Richard Zane, MD, chief innovation officer for Aurora, Colo.-based UCHealth, told Becker's.
Amazon has since launched One Medical for Prime, offering Amazon Prime members unlimited virtual visits for $9 a month. In January, Amazon Pharmacy integrated with One Medical to give patients and providers increased access to medication consultations.
One Medical provides concierge primary care, with longer appointments and no wait times, as well as 24/7 virtual care for a yearly membership of $199 and has formed collaborations with 19 hospitals. The hybrid primary care company has specialty care referral agreements in the health systems' local markets.
The deals allow specialists from health systems to deliver care to Amazon's primary care patients.
Some of those health systems told Becker's in September the partnership improves access to primary care in their markets.
"This partnership with One Medical is a prime example of Mass General Brigham's commitment to working with world-class partners that complement our strengths," said Lynn Stofer, president of Mass General Brigham Community Physicians, part of the Somerville, Mass.-based health system. "One Medical offers a broad primary care network with tight connections to our entire team of Mass General Brigham specialists, providing outstanding services for our patients and increasing access to care at a time when demand continues to outpace supply."