The Amazon Takeover of Healthcare Industry Continues with Clinic Chain Acquisition

Amazon is continuing its expansion into the healthcare industry, announcing the acquisition of One Medical clinics in a $3.9 billion deal.

The New York Times reports that while Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has focused on driving down costs, the company is still continuing to expand into areas it believes could be profitable. One such area is healthcare. Breitbart News recently reported an internal team at Amazon is developing a cancer vaccine in partnership with the Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. The project is reportedly already recruiting patients to participate in an FDA-approved clinical trial.

On Thursday, the company announced its first major acquisition under Jassy, a $3.9 billion deal to purchase One Medical, a chain of primary care clinics around the country. One Medical’s share price was down significantly since its peak last year and Amazon said that it would acquire the company for $18 per share in an all-cash transaction.

The deal is yet another in Amazon’s attempts to step into the healthcare market. Neil Lindsay, the senior vice president of Amazon Health Services, said in a statement announcing the deal: “We think health care is high on the list of experiences that need reinvention.”

Amazon reportedly wants to be the “front door” through which customers access health care, according to Christina Farr, an investor in health care with OMERS Ventures. “They want to nail the consumer experience,” she said.

One Medical operates a network of 188 medical offices, mostly in large cities, and provides virtual medical services that patients pay a $199 annual fee to access. It spent $2.1 billion last year to acquire Iora Health which provides care for seniors as part of the Medicaid program.