Amazon Creates Palm Scanning Payment Method

Amazon is taking its palm-scanning technology beyond retail and straight into healthcare. In a major move, NYU Langone Health has announced that its patients will soon be able to check in for appointments using Amazon One, the company’s biometric authentication system. While the technology is designed to make check-ins faster and more efficient, it also raises questions about privacy, data security, and the growing role of biometrics in everyday life.

Palm-Reading, But Make It Tech

For those unfamiliar, Amazon One was first introduced as a contactless payment system in Amazon Go stores and later expanded to Whole Foods locations. It allows users to link their palm prints to their Amazon accounts, enabling quick transactions with just a wave of the hand. Now, NYU Langone Health is adopting this technology to verify patient identities at check-in, aiming to cut wait times and reduce administrative strain.

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Andrew Rubin, NYU Langone’s senior vice president of clinical affairs, explained the benefits of the new system in an interview with CNBC. “That’s both a positive experience for the patient to be able to actually get in faster, and requires less work on our part having to authenticate who the patient is,” he said.

With NYU Langone handling more than 10 million patient visits annually, even saving a couple of minutes per check-in could have a significant impact. The hospital expects the system to reduce check-in times from two to three minutes to less than a minute.

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The Privacy Question

Anytime biometric data is involved, privacy concerns follow. Given that healthcare data is some of the most sensitive information a person can have, there’s understandable skepticism about handing over palm prints to a tech giant like Amazon. However, both Amazon and NYU Langone have made it clear that Amazon One will not store or access patients’ health records—only their palm prints for identification purposes.

Participation is entirely voluntary, and patients can opt out at any time, with the option to delete their data if they decide to unenroll. Still, the move raises questions about how far biometric data collection should go in healthcare and whether it could eventually expand into other areas, like verifying prescriptions or granting access to hospital systems.

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A Sign of Things to Come?

This is Amazon’s first foray into healthcare with its palm-scanning tech, but it’s unlikely to be the last. The company has hinted at potential future applications, such as using Amazon One to grant access to high-security hospital areas or computer systems.

Nader Mherabi, NYU Langone’s chief digital and information officer, shared that this collaboration has been in the works for about nine months. “We’re looking at additional applications beyond patient check-in that could further streamline operations,” he said.

Amazon’s growing influence in the healthcare sector has been met with both excitement and concern. While automation and AI-driven solutions could revolutionise patient care, they also signal a shift towards an increasingly tech-driven healthcare experience—one where personal data, security, and convenience are constantly being weighed against each other.

For now, NYU Langone will begin rolling out Amazon One at its New York metro locations next week, with plans to expand later this year. Whether other hospitals follow suit remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: biometric tech in healthcare is here to stay. The question is, will patients embrace it or resist the digital hand?