By
Chimamanda U. Martha
March 11th, 2024
The service is expected to launch as soon as next year. By that time, Japan is expected to allow electronic prescriptions, the same like during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) is reportedly considering expanding its business in Japan and entering the country’s prescription drug market. As the Nikkei newspaper has stated, Amazon might launch a new service that would allow patients to receive online instructions on how to take medicines prescribed by doctors. In addition, customers would also enjoy home delivery.
Amazon Is Interested in Entering Prescription Drug Market in Japan
For developing the project, Amazon is reportedly planning to partner small and medium-sized pharmacies. With their support, Amazon will create a platform to sell prescription medicines online. Amazon itself will not run its own pharmacies or carry its own inventory. Instead, it will be in charge of the prescription drug delivery system.
The service is expected to launch as soon as next year. By that time, Japan is expected to allow electronic prescriptions, the same like during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Entering the prescription drug market in Japan would be a great milestone for Amazon. Currently, there are about 60,000 pharmacies dispensing prescription drugs in the country and 70 wholesalers. The prices are set by the Japanese government.
Amazon Healthcare Business
Amazon is looking for ways to expand its healthcare business. In July, the retail giant announced its plans to acquire primary health-care provider One Medical for as much as $3.9 billion. In addition, Amazon agreed to pay $18 for each share of One Medical which had 767,000 members and enterprise clients. With the deal, Amazon wanted to prioritize healthcare on its list of “experiences that need reinvention” as well as improve the quality of booking physician appointments.
In August, Amazon doubled back on its healthcare efforts and decided to shut down its telehealth service Amazon Care. The news was unexpected, as the company initially planned to expand Amazon Care into 20 cities, apart from Seattle, where it was initially launched. As the Head of services at the healthcare Neil Lindsay explained, Amazon Care did not align with the long-term goals of the enterprise.
Now, Amazon is eyeing the Japanese healthcare market.
Amazon’s representative said:
“We are proud of the work we’ve done, and will continue to invent, learn from our customers and industry partners, and hold ourselves to the highest standards as we further help reimagine the future of health care and the role Amazon can play.”
While some former Amazon employees are saying that the company will likely have to narrow its focus on healthcare goals, others believe that Amazon is still planning to ultimately dominate consumer health care across the board.