Cleveland Clinic is collaborating with Amazon's One Medical to expand access to primary care and learn from the disruptor's digital strategy, a health system leader told Becker's.
The academic health system said Oct. 21 it is partnering with the hybrid primary care company to open a One Medical office next year in northeast Ohio.
"Something that really resonated with us with One Medical was the fact that they closely partner with a health system in every market they join," said James Gutierrez, MD, chief of the Cleveland Clinic Primary Care Institute. "They don't place themselves to come in and compete with other players in the market. They look for opportunities to align and complement them, really to the benefit of the community."
"We also saw it as an opportunity to learn," he added. "They do some very exciting things with their digital front end, and we saw it as an opportunity to learn more and see more about how patients engage with their technology and how that can facilitate connection with primary care."
One Medical, which Amazon acquired in 2023 for $3.9 billion, offers same-day appointments and 24/7 virtual care to members who pay the $199 annual fee (or $9 a month for Amazon Prime members; patients' health insurance is also billed for visits). Through One Medical's app, patients can message providers, access on-demand video visits, and schedule in-person or virtual appointments.
"We have a very robust virtual primary care offering, and many of our specialties offer virtual second opinions and other ways to engage with patients," Dr. Gutierrez said. "But what's attractive about the One Medical platform is just the seamless integration, the way it's all there within one app. We saw that as a model that we absolutely could learn from and really seek to emulate."
One Medical will own and operate the offices and employ the staff but share revenue with Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Gutierrez said, declining to get into the specifics of the financial arrangement. Cleveland Clinic will also contribute startup costs to launching the practices and sit on a joint operating council with One Medical, which will refer specialty care patients to the health system.
The two organizations entered into discussions about two years ago. The goal is to open at least one office by the end of 2025 with more to follow.
Dr. Gutierrez hopes not only that Cleveland Clinic learns from One Medical but that the primary care company picks up pointers from the health system, as it has from its other partners.
"While offering different options for patients, our goals of care — how we approach both preventive care as well as chronic disease care — are very aligned around shared quality metrics and shared accountability," he said. "We're really looking to have a variety of different channels that work the best for individuals but ultimately get us to the same place, which is better access to care, a higher quality of care, greater safety of care and, by meeting people where they want to meet us, a more satisfying patient experience."