Two acquisitions by Amazon and UnitedHealth last week will probably bring significant changes to how patients find and pay for healthcare in the future.
Key Points:
- Healthcare in the home setting is seen as the wave of the future.
- Primary care is expected to become more personalized and accessible, with retail companies adapting services based on consumer behavior including Millennial and GenZ population.
Largest Insurer, UnitedHealth acquires Home Health Business LHC Group for $5.4B
Healthcare at home is coming back. The current trend has been for health insurers, hospitals, and investment firms to acquire home health companies, hoping to benefit by offering convenient, high-quality care in the home. Last week, UnitedHealth bought the home health business LHC Group for $5.4 billion dollars. LHC has a large share of the home health market with revenue of $2.2 billion in 2021 and will be integrated into Optum, UnitedHealth’s health services division. Optum already owns a home health and hospice business.
Pros: At-home medical care could help patients track their health conditions more closely as well as coordinate care to help maximize their health and wellbeing. For insurers like UnitedHealth, they want to prevent expensive and potentially risky visits to the hospital or emergency room.
Cons: Oversight is needed to crack down on any potential fraud, especially with Medicare Advantage.
Amazon gets into Primary care business as it completes its $3.5B Takeover of One Medical
Amazon acquired One Medical, for 3.5 billion dollars this week after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the agency would not stop the deal. This acquisition will give the online retailer a virtual health platform, as well as offices for in-person medical services.
One Medical, a primary care company, was founded by a physician in 2007. One Medical’s mission was to offer an affordable alternative to concierge healthcare, which includes 24/7 access to doctors, same-day appointments and more personalized, comprehensive care.
One Medical has a yearly membership fee of $199, which Amazon is planning to discount to $144 for the first year.
The retail giant hopes to bring its customer base, analytics skills and its laser focus on consumer needs to help it make a huge impact on how primary care is delivered to the average patient.
Amazon is also looking to engage younger clients who seek and choose healthcare providers in new ways. For example, Millennials and GenZ patients are willing to change providers based on convenience, price transparency and digital services.
Pros: More accessible, convenient healthcare with clearer pricing and more options for services.
Cons: No guarantee that higher-quality healthcare will be maintained or become available.
This past year, many retailers like CVS, Walmart, Walgreens have also expanded their primary care services significantly. Overall, US patients will have more options and more accessible care in the future.
Image by Drazen Zigic on Freepik
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