Amwell Review: Pros, Cons, Pricing & More Details

The massive growth of online healthcare solutions has benefited many patients who could not afford in-person doctor consultations.

The boom is even more pronounced after the COVID-19 pandemic when the work-from-home set-up forced everyone to stay indoors at all times. And virtual healthcare also gradually became the new normal.

It became a more promising solution allowing you to get diagnosed by board-certified medical professionals and receive prescriptions at a far better cost without leaving your homes.

In this article, we will review Amwell, where you get round-the-clock access to licensed medical experts, specialists, and emergency care providers through your phone, mobile, tablet, computer, or laptop.

Although Amwell was not initially established to directly help you with the diagnosis of chronic diseases requiring extensive lab testing and other diagnostic procedures, the platform can definitely share its observations and suggestions with your regular doctor, whom you may have to visit in person, saving you a lot of time and effort.

However, in 2023, the platform partnered with DarioHealth to introduce a new program called the cardiometabolic program to address chronic health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure management, etc., digitally.

About Amwell

American Well Corporation, rebranded as Amwell in the year 2020, is a healthcare organization founded in 2006 by Israeli brothers Dr. Ido Schoenberg and Dr. Roy Schoenberg headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

The company provides around 55 health plans easily accessible in all 50 states of the US and forms one of the most extensive and holistic healthcare networks in the country. According to a report by a mobile analytics firm, Amwell’s mobile app was the most downloaded online healthcare app of 2014, which crossed 1 million downloads.

Being one of the oldest players in the telehealth ecosystem, the company was the first among all its competitors to receive recognition and accreditation from the American Telemedicine Association in 2015.

The platform offers subscription-based 24×7 telehealth and telemedicine services, including delivery of primary care, emergency care, specialty virtual consultations, and online psychiatric assistance. It links patients and licensed healthcare providers specializing in different fields through encrypted video calls. Amwell even operates via a mobile app for added convenience.

Amwell Review 2023: Pricing, Features, Pros, Cons, and More

This section provides a comprehensive review of Amwell that includes information about the overall cost, how it works, treatments covered, existing competitors, and additional features, as well as benefits.

1. How Does it Work?

Amwell has a huge website with a wide variety of solutions for healthcare providers, patients, and payers or employers. For example, the Amwell Carepoint solutions help connect physicians with patients through its electronic devices such as tablets, TV kits, carts, and more specially enabled for virtual care.

The Amwell Psychiatric Care and Amwell Medical Group further acts like an extension of existing provider networks designed to reduce staff hiring costs, provide uninterrupted service and support in case of patient surge and deliver top-quality virtual healthcare.

I will cover the process for signing up with Amwell as a patient and review it based on my experience.

It is a short 3-step process that starts with opening an account. This is done to securely save all my details for future consultations.

The next step was to choose a doctor from a list of available practitioners that fits my needs. It was easy for me to pick one as I could review their qualifications, background, training information, and patient reviews. I also was given the option to select my preferred pharmacy in the location I lived so the Amwell team could drop a prescription if required.

The third and last step was to schedule my video consultation with the chosen doctor through the app or via the web. I preferred using Amwell’s mobile app as it was more convenient.

My virtual session went on for about 26 minutes, but you can reduce or increase the duration depending on how much time you would like to spend with your doctor explaining your medical history and existing symptoms and resolving doubts, if any.

Video consultations are mandatory in most states to receive prescriptions for your condition. For phone visits, you must speak to an Amwell representative first, who will put you in touch with the right medical professional almost immediately.

Another option is to sign-up for Amwell’s collaborative care, which combines primary care, including nutrition guidance, psychotherapy or talk therapy, and comprehensive psychiatric treatment, also known as integrated care. This is to ensure both your physical and psychological or mental health is taken care of in a holistic way.

I have not purchased this package, but here are the steps to get started with collaborative care on Amwell in case you wish to try it out:

• Get your primary care doctor’s/physician’s fax number
• Enroll with Amwell by inputting this fax number so the team can start coordinating
• Speak to your doctor to know if he or she is okay with ordering controlled substances for psychiatric care prescribed by Amwell
• Keep your doctor’s office in the loop about your psychiatric treatment and medication at all times

2. Pricing/Affordability

I would not say Amwell’s services are in the affordable range. The platform scores well for being truly accessible across America, but the healthcare solutions it offers are pricey.

The amount I spent on my treatment/consultations at Amwell was based on numerous factors, such as:

• The type of care chosen, urgent care, will cost more
• The medical practitioner, their certifications/qualifications, and his or her treatment approach/protocol
• Prescription medication needed
• The duration of the phone or video session

You can expect to spend around $100 USD to $130 USD on counseling and $279 USD on psychiatric evaluations on a per-session basis with a $40 USD cancellation fee if the scheduled consultations are not canceled or rescheduled 24 hours in advance. 

3. Insurance Coverage

There is no shortage of insurance coverage on Amwell as the platform accepts around 55 popularly used health plans such as United Healthcare, Aetna, Medica, Health Tradition, Capital Blue Cross (PA), Beacon Health, and more.

Moreover, the expenses can be reduced with HSA or FSA card payments. In case your insurance carrier is not a part of Amwell’s in-network plans, you can also get a superbill from Amwell.

However, insurance coverage is only available for urgent care consultations. Any session with a specialist is not eligible for reimbursement.

To check if Amwell’s services are covered by your insurance plan, you must sign-up, create an account to enter all your insurance details, including your subscriber ID, and then you would get to know the final cost/co-pay after processing your insurance in the final step.

Honestly, I am not a fan of co-pays! They are confusing and exhausting, in my opinion, as every insurance carrier has a number of rules, terms, and conditions to comply with. But they may make the services a bit affordable. However, it really depends on which services you are using. So, get this checked beforehand.

4. Accessibility

Amwell has a wide network of healthcare providers spread across the entire country, so there are zero accessibility barriers.

Prescription management at Amwell is generally available in most states via video calls. But you are eligible to get prescriptions even on phone calls if you are a resident of the below-mentioned states:

• Kansas
• Hawaii
• Michigan
• Montana
• Arkansas
• Utah
• Nevada
• Texas
• Colorado
• Maryland
• District of Columbia
• New York
• Illinois
• Minnesota
• Pennsylvania
• Tennessee
• North Dakota
• South Dakota
• Wyoming
• Washington
• Wisconsin

5. Privacy

Patient reviews about the privacy aspect have mostly been positive due to the secure streaming of videos and complete HIPAA compliance by Amwell.

6. Treatments Available

Amwell is a highly integrated platform offering a diverse range of medical and psychological solutions in the following categories:

• Psychiatry
• Urgent care
• Women’s Health
• Pediatrics
• Nutrition counseling
• Therapy
• Second opinions
• Breastfeeding support for nursing mothers

There is hardly anything that the platform does not provide treatment for. I am listing down a few of them and will leave a link to the exhaustive list of health issues Amwell addresses:

• Bipolar disorder
• Anorexia
• Anxiety
• ADHD/ADD
• Acne treatment
• Back pain management
• Asthma
• Depression
• Diabetes
• Drug addiction treatment
• Dyspareunia
• Chronic care management
• Knee pain management
• Scar treatment
• Sinus infection treatment
• Scoliosis
• Insomnia
• Incontinence
• Panic attack management
• Parkinson’s treatment
• Phobia and post-partum depression
• PTSD treatment and more

Conditions (amwell.com): This is the list of conditions treated by Amwell in alphabetical order. Remember to clear your search and refresh every time you want to switch to a new alphabet to search for specific medical illnesses covered by the platform.

Coming to taking online prescription management services at Amwell, there are state-wise restrictions that you must adhere to as per the Federal Ryan Haight Act to regulate the selling of controlled drugs by pharmacies in the US.

Prescription refills also need the go-ahead from your primary care doctor or online physician and a complete medical evaluation. You will strictly need video consultations to get an online prescription (no phone visits at all) if you are living in the below states (27 states):

• Arizona
• Idaho
• Alabama
• Florida
• California
• Delaware
• Indiana
• Georgia
• Ohio
• Maine
• Kentucky
• Iowa
• Oregon
• Missouri
• New Mexico
• Massachusetts
• Louisiana
• Rhode Island
• Nebraska
• North Carolina
• South Carolina
• New Hampshire
• Oklahoma
• New Jersey
• Vermont
• West Virginia
• Virginia

Amwell is not authorized to prescribe certain substances via online visits, such as Xanax, Adderall, Focalin, Cocaine, Ativan, Diazepam, Codeine, Fentanyl, Ritalin, Valium, and more.

7. Pros and Cons

How Does Amwell Stack up Against its Competitors?

Apart from a substantially large number of offerings created to provide a complete healthcare solution and the pricing, which is expensive, Amwell, to me, seems unbeatable compared to its competitor platforms when it comes to high-quality healthcare. It is like a one-stop shop for all your healthcare needs.

Given it is one of the largest and oldest healthcare companies in the USA, and the world, it has established itself as one of the leading. Most trustworthy providers and other platforms may have a lot of catching up to do.

However, it may not be a very economical option, so people who are on a budget may prefer competitors such as Talkspace or Brightside for mental healthcare. For physical healthcare, there are other pocket-friendly options such as HealthSapiens, Rethink My Healthcare, and Sesame Care.

Conclusion

Considering the satisfaction ratings given by most customers, Amwell can be your go-to platform for all your healthcare needs if its pricing is not a huge deterrent for you.

Psychiatric consultations are more expensive than regular sessions, with follow-ups costing around $99 USD. If you are meeting a specialist online, make sure you are ready to pay their fees in one go, for which you can claim reimbursement later in case you have an insurance plan that covers the service cost.

However, the diversity and quality offered by Amwell in terms of insurance as well as healthcare services are exceptional, so I would definitely recommend this platform for general and psychological healthcare.