What you really give away when you sign up for Amazon Clinic
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, protects your private information whenever you visit a healthcare professional. Now, the bad news. HIPAA rules and regulations don’t necessarily apply to mental health apps. Here’s what you need to know.
Amazon Clinic is a service that hooks you up with clinicians for treatment. After signing up for treatment, a healthcare provider (HCP) prescribes medication for anything from allergies to high cholesterol.
Here’s the thing: Amazon is not providing the care itself. It’s more of a middleman between you and the people who will treat you. And that’s where the problems begin.
How Amazon Clinic works
All you have to do is choose an online clinic and fill out a form. You don’t need to call anyone or even have a video chat. Depending on your condition, you may need to upload photos of the affected area.
A U.S.-licensed clinician will review your information and message you with a treatment plan that includes prescriptions and behavioral recommendations. After getting your treatment plan, you can message the clinician with follow-up questions for up to 14 days at no additional cost.
Amazon Clinic doesn’t accept health insurance at this time. Instead, you pay a flat fee for care, which can be as low as $30. The cost of medication isn’t included in the fee.
Submitting private health information for your care is a normal part of any doctor’s visit, but Amazon is standing between you and them here. So what is happening with your data?
The HIPAA in the room
Though Amazon declares it’s “compliant with HIPAA and all other applicable laws and regulations,” there’s more to the fine print.
When you sign up for treatment through Amazon Clinic, you “authorize” all entities involved. This includes doctors, pharmacies and labs to share your Protected Health Information (PHI) with Amazon.
Here’s what constitutes PHI:
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