Amazon has teamed up with buzzy tech-enabled primary care group Crossover Health to launch health centers near its fulfillment centers and operations facilities.
The first pilot of the "Neighborhood Health Centers"— which will made available exclusively to the tech giant's employees and their families—will be located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, officials said. Crossover will fully operate and staff the centers, providing "full-spectrum acute, chronic, and preventive primary care, prescription medications, vaccinations, behavioral health services, physical therapy, chiropractic care, health coaching, and care navigation to specialty referral services," officials said.
Amazon ultimately expects to establish 20 health centers in five cities across the U.S., including Phoenix, Louisville, Kentucky; Detroit, and San Bernardino/Moreno Valley, California.
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“Across the U.S., an increasing number of patients do not have easy access to a primary care physician and instead utilize emergency or urgent care options, which is not only more expensive for patients, but also overlooks important preventative care opportunities,” said Darcie Henry, Amazon’s vice president of human resources, in a statement. “We want to solve that for our employees, and the launch of these new Neighborhood Health Centers will provide a range of quality primary care services for employees across the country—further strengthening Amazon’s industry-leading benefits program, which provides comprehensive healthcare for employees starting on day one of employment.”
Crossover was founded in 2010 as a solution for self-funded employers to help curb healthcare costs by ensuring their workforce received well-coordinated care aimed at improving outcomes and reducing costs. It got a major boost early on when it partnered to offer employee clinics for Apple. They've built a roster to include companies Microsoft and LinkedIn.
Officials say the first health center created through the partnership will offer extended hours to accommodate various employee work schedules. Same-day pediatric services will also be available.
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