Best Buy Divests Health Tech Startup Current Health
Best Buy has sold Current Health, a patient monitoring startup it acquired for approximately $400 million in 2021. The Scottish health company, which offers remote vital-sign monitoring for “hospital-at-home” care, was reacquired by its founder, Christopher McGhee.
In a blog post, McGhee stated that Current Health had reached a third of U.S. patients in “hospital-at-home” care in recent years. He expressed his commitment to continuing the company’s mission to shift healthcare into home and community settings.
Best Buy’s decision to divest Current Health comes as the retailer works to improve the profitability of its health business. The segment has faced challenges, including sluggish adoption of in-home health services and financial struggles among healthcare providers.
“We still believe in the fundamental strategy of leveraging technology to enable care at home and believe it will be important to the future of health care,” said Best Buy CEO Corie Barry during an analyst call in March. “But the market is not scaling as fast as we originally forecasted.”
While divesting Current Health, Best Buy will maintain other parts of its health business, including medical alert systems Lively and PERS+. The company has assured a smooth transition to ensure patient safety and customer success.
The sale of Current Health is part of Best Buy’s efforts to restructure its health business and maximize its value. The retailer had previously invested heavily in this segment, spending $800 million to acquire a mobile device and emergency call service before purchasing Current Health.
Best Buy’s health business has faced asset impairments, with $109 million in restructuring charges for the three-month period ending May 4. Despite these challenges, the company remains committed to its health business strategy, albeit with adjustments to improve profitability.
