Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to spend $1.37 billion to accumulate the remaining 30% of specialty pharmacy agency Shields well being options that it did not already personal.
In September 2021, Walgreens spent $970 million to wind up to be a majority stakeholder in Shields, and the agency will buy the remaining stake from completely different equity holders. The transaction is predicted to close by the extreme of 2022, the corporations acknowledged Tuesday.
buying Shields, which works with eighty well being functions nationwide and represents greater than 1 million sufferers with superior situations, gives Walgreens an alternative to extra pay money for the quick-rising specialty pharmacy market, a Walgreens spokesperson acknowledged in a press launch.
Shields operates on an constructed-in mannequin, working with insurers and hospital-owned pharmacies to make constructive that sufferers have entry to specialty medicines.
the agency will proceed to function as a particular enterprise inside Walgreens, led by co-founder and current president John Lucey, who will discover your self to be Shields’ CEO. Lee Cooper, who’s presently Shields’ CEO, will lead Walgreens’ pharmacy half, starting Oct. 1.
The transaction is the latest step by Walgreens to diversify its well being half providers in pharmacy, important care, put up-acute care and know-how. Over the previous yr, Walgreens has spent greater than $5.5 billion in gives to wind up to be majority proprietor of the important-care startup VillageMD, as properly as to the dwelling well being revenue administration agency CareCentrix.
Between McKesson planning to accumulate Rx financial savings options and the Federal commerce fee launching an investigation into important pharmacy revenue administration corporations, an superior deal of exercise has occurred inside the prescription treatment dwelling, acknowledged Marissa Moore, a well being tech investor at OMERS Ventures.
With specialty pharmacy treatment notably altering proper into a driver of rising healthcare prices, Moore acknowledged it’s no shock that corporations are investing in managing and controlling these funds.
pretty than focusing solely on drug pricing, corporations are starting to mix knowledge analytics, affected person training and utilization administration strategies as an reply to hold away from losing prices, she acknowledged.
“That constructed-in method is the coronary heart of Shields’ mannequin and a large set off why Walgreens went with Shields,” Moore acknowledged.
For its fiscal third quarter that ended may 31, Walgreens reported $32.6 billion in income—down 4.2% yr-over-yr. well being and wellness gross sales elevated 7.9%, partly pushed by at-dwelling COVID-19 exams and cough, chilly and flu merchandise.
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