Health Services

Walgreens bolsters digital marketplace with new chronic disease management tools

Find Care, which was launched one year ago, was initially started to help patients find and identify location specific healthcare services through the Walgreens app and website.

As more digital health products have emerged with the intention of treating and managing chronic disease, traditional healthcare stakeholders have looked toward new ways to distribute the emerging technologies to patients.

Case in point, Walgreens digital marketplace Find Care has been expanded with new tools from Propeller Health and Dexcom to help individuals manage respiratory and metabolic diseases.

Find Care, which was launched one year ago, was initially started to help patients find and identify location specific healthcare services through the Walgreens app and website.

The new vertical was launched in the face of increasing competition from retailers like CVS Health, Walmart and Amazon which continue to make strides into the delivery of healthcare services, as well as declining reimbursement rates which have challenged the pharmacy’s core business model.

The retail pharmacy chain’s initial partners on Find Care included local providers like Miami’s UHealth system, as well as lab testing companies like LabCorp and startups like MDLive and Heal.

With the introduction of Dexcom and Propeller to the platform, Walgreens customers can now sign up to receive Dexcom G6 CGM and Propeller’s inhaler sensor which tracks medication usage and can help warn users of high sensitivity events through the company’s associated mobile app.

“One of the goals of Walgreens Find Care is to feature health care providers who share our commitment to quality care, convenience and accessibility, contributing to a breadth of service so our customers and patients have access to a wide range of health care services,” Walgreens Vice President of Healthcare Innovation Giovanni Monti said in an email.

The marketplace provides a channel to distribute new products and services developed in conjunction with partners like Humana.

Walgreens started a joint venture with the insurer to run senior health centers in Kansas City under the Partners in Primary Care banner which are accessible through Find Care.

Outside of its affiliation with providers through Find Care, Walgreens also announced an effort in April to launch fully fledged in-store primary care clinics in partnership with clinic operator VillageMD.

Find Care is meant to be more consumer friendly way to connect with health services with clearer upfront pricing models. Still, Walgreens cautions that listings on the platform aren’t meant to act as an endorsement or guarantee of the provider by the pharmacy company.

In contrast to competitors like CVS Health, which has made major moves to expand into care delivery in the wake of its Aetna acquisition, Walgreens has been more cautious in its approach, preferring to partner with established providers.

Photo: Natali_Mis, Getty Images

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