CVS Health Corp. is approaching the finish line on a $10.5B deal to buy a network of primary care centers for Medicare recipients.
The company is finalizing negotiations with Oak Street Health to acquire the company for roughly $39 per share, The Wall Street Journal reports. The move, which follows the company’s $8B purchase of home-care provider Signify Health in September, would drastically expand its primary care business.
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Oak Street has more than 160 senior care clinics across 21 states. Aetna, which CVS also owns, offers a private version of Medicare that could tie into Oak Street’s existing services, which emphasize value-based care over the traditional fee-for-a-service model, per the WSJ.
A nationwide shortage of primary care doctors has prompted pharmacy chains to expand their healthcare offerings, according to Advisory Board. In late 2021, Walgreens announced it would spend $5.2B opening 600 Village Medical clinics by 2025 and 1,000 by 2027.
Some ventures have been more successful than others. Amazon ended its telehealth service, Amazon Care, at the close of last year, claiming it wasn't a sustainable long-term solution for enterprise customers.
But the e-commerce giant also made a nearly $4B investment in healthcare when it purchased concierge provider One Medical in July, Advisory Board reported, signaling its commitment to the competitive primary care market.
