Last year, Amazon became the second publicly traded American company (following Apple) to hit over $1 trillion dollars in value.[1] According to the New York Times, for every dollar spent on e-commerce in the U.S., Amazon racks in 49 cents.
For the most part, Amazon has grown to become both ubiquitous and inconspicuous in our daily lives. Its subsidiaries include Audible, Whole Foods, IMDb, and Twitch. The company gives consumers instant access to music, movies, and groceries with the click of a button.[2] Now, it may even provide us with instant healthcare.
On January 30, 2018, Amazon unveiled a collaboration with Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan to kickstart a new healthcare venture.[3] Later in the year, they hired a world-renowned surgeon, Atul Gawande, as their CEO. They also hired Dr. Martin Levine, a top geriatrician and former medical director of Iora Healthcare, to lead its internal healthcare group.[4] Dr. Levine’s Seattle practice focused on Medicare patients. This hire led business insiders to believe healthcare technologies for the aging population ranked highly on the budding company’s priorities.
Over the course of a year, Amazon has laid a foundation to reshape healthcare.[3] They released a private brand of over the counter medications while “poaching” employees from top pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. In April, the company received a patent for a delivery drone and created a team within their Alexa division to make the robot more amenable to healthcare. This would include the ability for Alexa to schedule its user a doctor’s appointment or to recognize when its user is sick through voice recognition.
Other major events included Amazon’s acquisition of PillPack, a full service, online pharmacy worth $1 billion.[3] They have continued to hire big-shots from the pharmaceutical, insurance, and consulting worlds. They launched a total of four exclusive over-the-counter medication brands and invested in cloud-based platforms to reshape payment networks, delivery of medical device bundles, and communication between researchers from across the world.
So, what exactly is Amazon’s vision for patients? Let’s say you wake up in the morning with a sore throat. From your bed, you let Alexa know that you don’t feel too well. Alexa asks if you want to make an appointment at the doctor’s office or if you would rather receive a virtual consult.[5] You decide to consult the virtual doctor through Alexa. The doctor wants to run some lab tests to confirm his suspicion of strep throat. Alexa orders a courier (you still have not left your bed) to deliver an at-home lab test. The culture comes back positive for strep, so your virtual doctor prescribes you antibiotics that are already on their way through the Marketplace’s online pharmacy. And, this all happens before lunch. Sounds pretty great, right?
While there is a good reason to remain skeptical about the role of technology in medicine, Amazon’s vision could reshape our approach to preventative care over the course of a few years. On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that the Amazon-JP Morgan-Berkshire Healthcare venture will officially be called Haven.[6] Atul Gawande posted a letter on the website announcing that the company will be an “advocate” for the patient by improving care, quality, and cost. The aim of the company will be to “create new solutions and work to change systems, technologies, contracts, policy, and whatever else is in the way of better care.”
Amazon will first use its own employees to try its novel healthcare delivery system. So, it may take a while before Alexa books your doctor’s appointments or refills your prescriptions. Still, healthcare providers may want to follow Haven’s innovations over the next few years. Changing how patients interact with technology, also means changing the role of the physician to adapt with the technology. Amazon will soon look to hire physicians for virtual consults, or they may even hire recent medical school graduates before residencies.
We rarely think twice about ordering toothpaste or a textbook off Amazon. The company has provided us with instantaneous access to products, content, data, streams, and downloads through their marketplace. In the near future, we may not think twice about how we interact with the healthcare system. Ordering a refill for diabetes, HIV, or hypertension medication may become as simple as saying, “Alexa, order my medications.”
- Streitfeld D. Amazon Hits $1,000,000,000,000 in Value, Following Apple. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/technology/amazon-stock-price-1-trillion-value.html. Published September 4, 2018. Accessed March 8, 2019.
- Subsidiaries. amazon.jobs. https://www.amazon.jobs/en/business_categories/subsidiaries. Accessed March 8, 2019.
- Paavola A. Amazon moves into healthcare: A 2018 timeline. Becker’s Hospital Review. https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/amazon-moves-into-healthcare-a-2018-timeline.html. Accessed March 8, 2019.
- Byers J, Bryant M. Amazon hires top Iora Health physician, CNBC reports. Healthcare Dive. https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/amazon-hires-iora-health-physician/515342/. Published January 23, 2018. Accessed March 8, 2019.
- Farr C. Amazon’s vision for the future of health care is becoming clear. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/17/amazon-vision-future-health-care.html. Published December 18, 2018. Accessed March 8, 2019.
- Tozzi J. Bloomberg.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-03-06/amazon-jpmorgan-berkshire-health-care-venture-to-be-called-haven. Published March 6, 2019. Accessed March 8, 2019.
Tina Samsamshariat is a member of the class of 2022 at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix. She received her Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Los Angeles and her MPH from the University of Southern California. She enjoys surfing, climbing, and rap music. Twitter: @TSamsamshariat