Best Buy announced Tuesday it has signed an agreement to acquire home care and remote monitoring platform Current Health.

Current offers a healthcare-at-home technology platform that uses biosensors to monitor a patient’s condition and identifies when they might need help from a clinician. The acquisition builds on Best Buy’s previous purchases focused on remote monitoring and senior care. 

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

“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.”

WHY IT MATTERS 

Telehealth use exploded during the pandemic as patients and providers limited in-person contact to avoid the spread of COVID-19. 

Utilization has slowed in 2021, but the ability to provide care and support at home could be especially beneficial for the senior market. By 2030, all members of the large Baby Boom generation will be over age 65, meaning one out of every five U.S. residents will be retirement age, according to the Census Bureau. 

Sarah Jones, then vice president for commercial product at Best Buy Health, told MobiHealthNews in January that the user experience will be especially important for seniors as they leverage digital health technology.

“Let’s meet people where they are and make sure they have the tools, the knowledge and the support to cross that digital divide,” Jones said. “Then let’s connect with them so we can actually leverage all of that innovation in a way that is useful for seniors.”

THE LARGER TREND

Best Buy’s other investments in the senior care and remote monitoring spaces include its Lively brand, which in March added several emergency-response and care services to the Apple Watch. 

In 2019, the technology retailer acquired remote senior monitoring service Critical Signal Technologies, and in 2018 it bought aging-in-place tech GreatCall.

Current closed a $43 million Series B funding round in April, and in February launched an initiative to build diverse longitudinal datasets for decentralized clinical trials. 

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

"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.”