By
Chimamanda U. Martha
March 11th, 2024
Amazon’s decision to cut short its healthcare service will have an impact on individuals and corporate entities already enrolled.
Amazon has doubled back on its efforts to break into the health care scene. This follows after the retail giant revealed on Wednesday that it would be shutting down its telehealth service Amazon Care by December 31.
The Official Statement
Announcing the decision, the Head of services at the healthcare Neil Lindsay said via a company email that the decision was the right one. He also says that it took months of careful consideration to finally arrive at the decision.
Lindsay admitted that the company is aware that customers who enrolled on Amazon Care have enjoyed every aspect of it. Nonetheless, he says the product may not align with the long-term goals of the enterprise. Part of the statement reads:
“Amazon Care is not a complete enough offering for the large enterprise customers we have been targeting and wasn’t going to work long-term.”
How far Has Amazon Care Telehealth Business Come?
In the years leading up to the formation of Amazon Care in 2019, the firm carried out due diligence to learn more about patient care. There was a particular secret meeting that was held in Seattle back in 2017. That meeting was reportedly attended by heavyweights in the health industry, signaling Amazon’s infallible intentions.
By 2019, the test phase began and Amazon Care was launched for employees close to the company’s headquarters in Seattle. It later revealed plans to extend into 20 other cities. But it wasn’t until February this year though, that Amazon eventually rolled out its virtual healthcare services. That is to its nationwide employees. This further appeared to hint at long-term ambitions on the part of the firm. However, that may not be true anymore.
Amazon’s decision to cut short its healthcare service will have an impact on individuals and corporate entities already enrolled. Although the exact amount of users of the service may be unknown.
Based on last June’s account of the former vice president at Amazon Care, however, the service has had some notable interest from top companies. Some of which include Silicon Labs, Whole Foods, and Hilton.