Alexa: Make me a doctor's appointment!

In an Amazon blog post yesterday, Rachel Jiang announced a new Alexa Skills Kit will allow “select Covered Entities and their Business Associates, subject to the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), to build Alexa skills that transmit and receive protected health information as part of an invite-only program.” Considered another disruptive technology from Amazon, the company said Alexa is now equipped with information received from healthcare providers, payors, pharmacy benefit managers, and digital health coaching companies.

What this means is that people who have the Alexa device will now be able to manage some of their healthcare needs at home – just by talking to the machine. They can book appointments, hear hospital post-discharge instructions, listen to pharmacy delivery updates and other healthcare-related activities. 

Here’s a list of what people can do using Alexa’s new healthcare skills:

·        Express Scripts (a leading Pharmacy Services Organization): Members can check the status of a home delivery prescription and can request Alexa notifications when their prescription orders are shipped.

·         Cigna Health Today (by Cigna, the global health service company): Eligible employees with one of Cigna's large national accounts can now manage their health improvement goals and increase opportunities for earning personalized wellness incentives.

·         My Children's Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) (by Boston Children's Hospital, a leading children's hospital): Parents and caregivers of children in the ERAS program at Boston Children's Hospital can provide their care teams updates on recovery progress and receive information regarding their post-op appointments.

·         Swedish Health Connect (by Providence St. Joseph Health, a healthcare system with 51 hospitals across 7 states and 829 clinics): Customers can find an urgent care center near them and schedule a same-day appointment.

·         Atrium Health (a healthcare system with more than 40 hospitals and 900 care locations throughout North and South Carolina and Georgia): Customers in North and South Carolina can find an urgent care location near them and schedule a same-day appointment.

·         Livongo (a leading consumer digital health company that creates new and different experiences for people with chronic conditions): Members can query their last blood sugar reading, blood sugar measurement trends, and receive insights and Health Nudges that are personalized to them.