NEWYORK –
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating Amazon’s $3.9 billion acquisition of the original health organization One Medical, a move that could delay closing the deal.
Both One Medical and Amazon received requests for additional information Friday regarding the FTC’s review of the merger, according to a filing with securities regulators of One’s parent company. Medical, 1Life Healthcare Inc. based in San Francisco.
In late July, Amazon announced plans to buy One Medical, an concierge-style medical service with about 190 medical offices in 25 markets. Last week, the e-commerce giant said it would shut down its own hybrid virtual home care service called Amazon Care, a competitor of One Medical, because it failed to meet demand. of cutomer.
The One Medical deal, first announced under CEO Andy Jassy, is another push into Amazon’s healthcare space following its acquisition of online pharmacy PillPack for $750 million in 2018. Groups calling for stricter antitrust regulations were quick to urge the FTC to block the merger. , arguing that it would further expand the company’s enormous market power.
An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment.
The FTC has been investigating Amazon Prime’s subscription and cancellation practices and has issued a civil subpoena in that case.
Last year, the company unsuccessfully requested that FTC Chairman Lina Khan drop separate antitrust investigations into its business, arguing that she would be biased. Khan was a notable critic of Seattle-based Amazon and other Big Tech companies before taking over as president. As a Yale law student in 2017, she wrote an influential study titled “Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox.”
