Amazon launched digital health monitoring services through a partnership with Omada Health.
Omada's more than 20 million members are eligible to enroll in the service through Amazon, according to a Jan. 8 post on Amazon's website. The service has programs designed to help patients monitor chronic conditions including prediabetes, diabetes and hypertension.
Patients who have health condition programs through their health plans may have access to specialized devices, a personal care team and other benefits, according to Amazon. Depending on the coverage plan, services may be available at no extra charge to patients.
Best Buy and other retailers not traditionally in the healthcare space have forayed into providing healthcare services such as discounted rides to medical appointments and home-based care.
These and other disruptors, such as wearable devices for consumers, have healthcare leaders both excited and wary, and some physicians have already noted changes in response to more direct-to-consumer care innovations.
"The more information patients have, the better they will be able to manage their own healthcare," Sri Sundaram, MD, an electrophysiologist at South Denver Cardiology Associates, told Becker's. "From a patient's perspective, it's only positive. From a physician's perspective, it can be overwhelming. I get daily reports from patients about abnormal recordings from their wearables. How do I respond when only the wearable is abnormal? Keeping up with this data and questions from patients has already become demanding."