Samsung confirmed a major update to S Health on Tuesday as the company reportedly enlisted the help of WebMD and Amwell to help develop the next generation of its healthcare Android app. Business Korea reports that the Seoul-based tech giant is working on a previously rumored feature that would allow users to set up and conduct video appointments with doctors via S Health. Customers will be able to contact affiliated doctors and search for their symptoms through the app that will support both credit card and insurance payments. South Korean nationals already have access to some of these features as of the 5.0 update for S Health, but Samsung is now looking to expand this service to more territories. The company is planning to first bring these new S Health additions to the United States, but it’s also interested in introducing the service to other territories, as well.
Additionally, the new version of Samsung’s healthcare app is expected to allow users to browse medical history and call 911. Consumers will also be able to use S Health to quickly access a list of local pharmacies. Rumors from South Korea suggest that Samsung may be looking to include support for voice commands into the next iteration of S Health, but the company has yet to confirm or deny that. Samsung didn’t reveal when the new version of S Health will be available in the US, but recent reports suggest that it may launch simultaneously with the Galaxy S8. The company’s next flagship is currently rumored to be released in mid-April. The improved version of S Health won’t be a Galaxy S8 exclusive and will also be available on many other Samsung-made devices including the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 Edge.
The South Korean firm isn’t the only tech giant looking to diversify its revenue stream by investing into healthcare apps as Google and Apple have been doing the same for some time now. It remains to be seen how exactly Samsung is going to monetize its mobile healthcare solution in the future, but some sort of an affiliate business model seems like a given considering everything the company revealed so far. More information will hopefully follow soon.