Amazon-Berkshire-JPMorgan venture wants to redesign health insurance

More details about the still-unnamed healthcare joint venture between Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase have come out during the ongoing court case over the hiring of a former UnitedHealth Group executive. The newly unsealed documents reveal the joint venture is aiming to redesign health insurance, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Details about the joint venture have been minimal, though previous court documents have indicated the three companies are focused on the healthcare needs of their own employees, rather than the broad health market. The case was brought forth by UnitedHealth Group, which argues Jack Stoddard, who is COO of the joint venture, violated a noncompete clause by taking the job.

Stoddard’s testimony released Wednesday revealed the venture is asking if it can “reinvent what insurance looks like in terms of benefit design,” the WSJ reported. The testimony also focused on making primary care services easier to access for the employees, and the venture wants to make it easier for doctors to spend more time with patients. It is also looking at pharmacy costs, but there aren’t any plans to compete with existing pharmacy benefit managers.

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Amy Baxter

Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."

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