Amazon acquires health care company One Medical for $3.9 billion

One Medical is a popular network of doctors’ offices in the United States

Today's expression: Time will tell
Explore more: Lesson #494
August 15, 2022:

Amazon is acquiring One Medical, a popular network of doctors’ office in the United States. One Medical takes a modern, hybrid approach to primary care by offering a blend of the in-office experience with technology for added patient convenience and accessibility. Some critics are worried that Amazon is only interested in the medical data. Plus, learn “time will tell.”

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Is my doctor’s office the future of medicine? Amazon seems to think so

Lesson summary

Hi there everyone, it’s Jeff and this is Plain English lesson number 494. JR is the producer, and all the content for this lesson is already up on the web site.

Now listen, we are ticking up slowly, one by one, toward 500. I’m starting to get excited for number 500, it’s in less than 3 weeks! We have a lot planned, and your free ticket to all the celebrations is waiting for you at PlainEnglish.com/500. So go there, PlainEnglish.com/500 to find out how you can be part of the celebration.

But we’re not going to let that distract us from the important business of English every Monday and Thursday. On today’s lesson: Amazon has just bought a popular network of doctors’ offices in the United States—it’s called One Medical. And it has been my doctor’s office for about seven years. I’ll tell you what’s so special about One Medical, and why Amazon, an online retailer, might be interested.

The expression today is “time will tell.” And we have a quote of the week. Let’s dive in.

Amazon, One Medical, and the modern doctor’s office

Very few things frustrate Americans like the experience of visiting a doctor. In a world of apps, instant communication, and personalized service, the doctor’s office seems like a portal back in time.

If you want to see the doctor, you have to go to the office. If you want to get a prescription, you have to see the doctor in person and then go to a pharmacy. If you have questions later, you’re welcome to make a follow-up appointment, but emailing a doctor or calling with questions is not encouraged. You might have to wait a few days or a week for an appointment.

In large part, this is due to the unnecessarily complex system of insurance. We can’t blame doctors and hospitals for this. Doctors don’t design the system; they just have to work with it. But one company thought it could do the impossible: work within the current thicket of government regulations and insurance rules, but also give good service on a modern platform that mimics the modern experience we have in the other parts of our lives. Shouldn’t going to the doctor be a pleasant experience, like getting an iPhone fixed at an Apple store?

I first heard about One Medical when I was living in New York in 2015. I didn’t go to the doctor much—I still don’t—but I at least wanted a primary care provider. I searched for the best doctors’ offices and somehow landed on One Medical.

Patients have to pay about $200 per year, over and above any treatment, if they want to be a patient at One Medical. However, in return, they—we—get better service and better technology than a traditional doctors’ office provides. One Medical has offices—they now have 200 across the US, concentrated in large cities and suburbs. But they blend the in-office experience with technology to provide the right kind of service in the right way at the right time.

The app lets patients schedule in-office appointments. But it also delivers remote care when needed. For example, not every ailment requires an in-office visit. If a quick remote visit can get the job done, then patients can see a physician via the app, twenty-four-seven. After an in-office visit, patients can send secure messages online, with follow up questions.

Let me give you an example. Imagine it’s Saturday morning and your arm starts to itch. You think nothing of it, but by 5:01 on Saturday afternoon, it’s really starting to bother you. Doctors’ offices are closed on Sundays. With most offices, you wouldn’t be able to even call for an appointment until Monday morning.

With One Medical’s hybrid model, things are different. You can chat with a doctor on the app after hours. If the doctor has questions, you can send photos or do a quick video call. If a simple prescription would help, the doctor would send the prescription to the nearest pharmacy and you could get it on that same Saturday night. If you still want a follow up appointment, you can schedule that on the app just in case you need it. And if you need to refill a prescription, you can do that by messaging instead of going into the office for a face-to-face visit.

This hybrid model, using technology, can improve the experience of seeing a doctor. Why should women—or now men! —have to visit a doctor in person to get or refill contraception? If you have typical cold and cough symptoms, why should you risk infecting everyone else to go into the office? Why should you have to show up at an office to refill a basic prescription?

I’m not saying that no other doctors’ offices or hospitals practice telehealth. They do. And I’m not saying that One Medical is the only network to offer good service; there are others. But I am saying that One Medical has nailed the experience. The app is well-designed, easy to use, and effective. The people who staff the messaging service and the doctors who do remote visits are patient-centric and the interactions just work. And they have also been able to grow and expand, proving that they can give good service to a lot of patients, not just a handful.

The offices reflect the same values. They’re well-designed; they’re comfortable; and the people who work there are friendly and customer-focused. How was this such a well-kept secret, I wondered back in New York all those years ago?

Well, it’s not a secret anymore. One Medical now has over 200 offices and serves almost a million patients. And last month, Amazon agreed to buy the company for almost $4 billion. Immediately, patient advocates cried foul, assuming Amazon would use medical data for nefarious purposes. That would be illegal—but a lot of One Medical patients are wary.

Amazon says it will use the technology and expertise of One Medical to improve health care services for more people. It could use the technology and expertise to bring health care to remote areas, with few hospitals. It could integrate a pharmacy into the existing One Medical subscription, so it’s easier and faster to get prescriptions. It could even put mini-clinics in Amazon’s existing grocery stores. Time will tell , but the secret is out.

Celebrate with us

Mark your calendars! JR and I have scheduled the official 500th-lesson celebration for the morning of September 3, and you are invited. That’s a Saturday. Saturday, September 3. It’s going to be at 9:00 in the morning New York time. So that’s morning in the Americas, afternoon in Europe, evening in Asia—everyone can be part of it.

We’re going to do a live stream on Facebook and Instagram. And on that stream, you’ll get to see me record the 500th lesson. JR will be here. You will see us both, JR will be on the stream. We will reveal the winners of the giveaway. And we will have a champagne toast on video, to all of you.

Yes, it will be the middle of the morning here, but you have my permission to join us in a champagne toast—or wine or beer or coffee or tea, your beverage of choice—but I’d love for you to join us on Facebook and Instagram.

That’s a little over two weeks from now. So get ready, mark your calendars. Connect with us on Facebook and Instagram. I’m making it really easy for you. Just connect with us at PlainEnglish.com/500. You can find our Facebook and Instagram links on there. And then join us on Facebook and Instagram live stream on September 3.

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Expression: Time will tell