Walmart has expanded its digital health services by acquiring CareZone, a technology platform and mobile app that allows individuals and families to manage medicine and chronic disease.
Specifically, the app helps manage prescription medications, scanning labels and insurance cards for a faster and simpler process. Members of CareZone’s product and technology team that built the app will be integrated into Walmart, according to a blog post announcing the acquisition. However, CareZone will remain a separate company.
The company has around 100 employees and has more than 5 million app installs, according to its website. It was founded in 2012 and has conducted numerous rounds of funding, totaling $168 million over the years, including $50 million in 2018.
“The goal of any technology startup is to build a product or experience that touches the lives of as many people as possible,” Walter Smith, co-founder and chief technology officer of CareZone, said in a statement. “Adding our technology platform to Walmart’s existing digital capabilities and physical reach creates a unique opportunity to redefine what the future of digital health and wellness can look like. The CareZone team members joining Walmart are excited to bring our knowledge and apply it to such a broad canvas.”
The move is the latest by Walmart to continue expanding into the healthcare space. Last year, Walmart opened primary care clinics in select locations to provide more care to customers. After starting with one location in Georgia, the model was expected to expand, and the company even opened a second center with imaging capabilities.
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."