Bostinno
Best Buy acquires Boston-based home health company
By: Jessica Bartlett
Best Buy has been monitoring and resolving viruses on your computer for years. And with the acquisition of a home health care company, now it wants to do the same for you.
The electronics giant plans to further its foray into the health care space with the acquisition of Boston-based Current Health, a remote health care software company.
The companies did not disclose a purchase price for the transaction.
“The future of consumer technology is directly connected to the future of health care,” said Deborah Di Sanzo, president of Best Buy Health, in a release. “We have the distinct expertise in helping customers make technology work for them directly in their homes and by combining Current Health’s remote care management platform with our existing health products and services, we can create a holistic care ecosystem that shows up for someone across all of their health care needs.”
Current markets itself as a “single solution” to delivering care at home, offering both the predictive analytics and command center of a hospital EMR with blood tests, medical equipment, remote monitoring wearables, drug delivery and even meal delivery.
The company works with a number of large brands helping to care for patients at home, including Mount Sinai Health System, Geisinger Health and the UK National Health Service. It is also used by major pharmaceutical companies such as AstraZeneca to support home-based drug trials.
The acquisition comes on the heels of massive growth for Current. In April, the company said it experienced 3,000% year-over-year revenue growth and planned to add 300 new positions over this year and next as it developed its platform.
“Over the coming decade, significantly more health care can be delivered in the home. We started Current Health to make that exciting transition radically easier for healthcare providers to achieve,” said Christopher McCann, CEO of Current Health, in a release. “Best Buy has unparalleled physical reach, world-class supply chain logistics, and trusted support services–allowing us to provide a high-touch consumer experience, at scale. We’re excited to join with Best Buy Health to move safe and effective healthcare into the home globally.”
Best Buy has been making investments in the health care space since 2018, when it acquired mobile products and connected device health care company GreatCall for $800 million. In 2021, GreatCall and Best Buy launched the Lively app — a kind of life-alert urgent response device and health care communication platform.
In its fourth quarter earnings call, Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said the company would push forward growth in consumer health, active aging and virtual care. Current fits seamlessly in with the third prong, giving the company a new tool to access patients recovering at home.
“The pandemic has only served to underscore our purpose and strategy,” Barry said in the earnings call. “The adoption of virtual care and telehealth by patients and physicians has been greatly accelerated by COVID-19 and is expected to continue to grow. We see significant opportunity over the long-term to make the experience much better for both patients and physicians by providing an integrated, seamless technology solution that is easy to use.”
