Best Buy to Acquire Current Health to Advance Tech-Focused Patient Care

Best Buy has agreed to buy care-at-home technology startup Current Health, according to a press release. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

With the acquisition, the electronics retailer will now own three healthcare companies, CNBC reported.

Current Health specializes in integrating remote patient monitoring, telehealth and patient engagement on one platform, the release stated. In-home connectivity enables healthcare providers to offer patients a single solution to manage all care in the home.

Using its proprietary wearable device, the company incorporates patient-reported information with data from biosensors, according to the release. The result is real-time data about a patient’s status that healthcare providers can use to guide decisions.

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Best Buy’s interest in healthcare started three years ago with the acquisition of GreatCall, a connected health devices firm, CNBC reported. In 2019, the consumer electronics chain bought telehealth monitoring firm Critical Signal Technologies.

“The future of consumer technology is directly connected to the future of healthcare,” said Best Buy Health President Deborah Di Sanzo in the 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 healthcare needs.”

Home-based healthcare is a growing trend that is fast becoming an important part of the medical system because it usually gives patients an improved quality of life as well as reduced expenses, according to the release.

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“Over the coming decade, significantly more healthcare can be delivered in the home,” said Current Health CEO Christopher McCann in the release. “We started Current Health to make that exciting transition radically easier for healthcare providers to achieve. 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.”