Amazon on Wednesday chose to close the $3.9 billion deal to acquire One Medical, a healthcare provider. The move occurred hours after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulators continued investigating the fillings for several months.
E-commerce giant Amazon agreed to acquire One Medical to provide high-quality services in health care and “dramatically improve” the experience in the sector.
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Amazon from earlier had its highest focus on boosting the healthcare sector, for which the company acquired PillPack, an online pharmacy, for $750 million in 2018. It even launched virtual clinics of its own and prescription facilities for different Prime members.
“We’re on a mission to make it dramatically easier for people to find, choose, afford, and engage with the services, products, and professionals they need to get and stay healthy, and coming together with One Medical is a big step on that journey,” said Neil Lindsay, senior vice president of Amazon Health Services, in a release.
“One Medical has set the bar for what a quality, convenient, and affordable primary care experience should be like. We’re inspired by their human-centred, technology-forward approach and excited to help them continue to grow and serve more patients.”
The deal for this healthcare was one of the first major deals of CEO Andy Jassy after succeeding Jeff Bezos in July 2021. For Jassy, healthcare has always remained an important area of development. He stated that health care is ‘ripe for disruption’, denoting long appointment periods and complex primary care systems.
“Customers want and deserve better, and that’s what One Medical has been working and innovating on for more than a decade,” Jassy said. “Together, we believe we can make the health care experience easier, faster, more personal, and more convenient for everyone.”
Amazon even provided discounts in One Medical membership plans for first-year United States users from $199 to $144, whether or not they are Prime members.
Earlier in September 2022, the FTC agency delivered a second request letter to both Amazon, and One Medical for extra information about the deal after the acquisition underwent an in-depth investigation carried out by the FTC.
Even though Amazon finished the deal without any thought of the threat of the FTC antitrust suit, the agency will still probe into the acquisition. It may still challenge the deal despite the facts presented.
“The FTC’s investigation of Amazon’s acquisition of One Medical continues,” said FTC spokesman Douglas Farrar.
“The commission will continue to look at possible harms to competition created by this merger as well as possible harms to consumers that may result from Amazon’s control and use of sensitive consumer health information held by One Medical.”
For future investigation, the agency sent both companies a warning letter writing that the choice to close the deal is at their own risk and the agency will still have some specific concerns regarding the deal, an agency official confirmed.
This is not just the first time the FTC has interfered with Amazon’s proceedings. In March, Amazon completed all regulatory hurdles for the $8.5 billion movie studio MGM deal. The agency is also monitoring the e-commerce giant that purchased iRobot for $1.65 billion last year.
