Best Buy Moves Further Into Health Field As It Acquires Company That Helps Connect Older Consumers, Caregivers
GreatCall also helps seniors obtain concierge-type and emergency services. Best Buy has already dipped a toe into the health care field with its health-and-wellness products.
The Associated Press:
Best Buy To Buy A Provider Of Health Devices For The Aging
Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy is pushing more into the health field, acquiring a company that provides emergency response devices for the aging. Best Buy said Wednesday it's paying $800 million for GreatCall. The San Diego, California-based company, which has more than 900,000 paying subscribers, offers services like an easy connection to operators who can connect users to caregivers, answer questions, and more. (8/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Best Buy To Acquire Jitterbug Parent GreatCall For $800 Million
Best Buy on Wednesday said the deal would be neutral to its adjusted earnings in fiscal 2019 and 2020 and boost them by 2021. The electronics retailer said the deal is part of its Best Buy 2020 strategy, which aims to use technology to address key human needs, specifically among the U.S.’s aging population. Last year, Best Buy introduced Assured Living, a service that helps adult children remotely check in on the health and safety of their parents. That service is now available in 21 markets, Best Buy said Wednesday. (Barba, 8/15)
In other health industry news —
The Wall Street Journal:
Health Insurer Shuns Amniotic-Tissue Product From MiMedx
United Healthcare, one of the nation’s largest insurance companies, has determined that amniotic tissue products made by MiMedx Group Inc. and other manufacturers are “unproven and/or not medically necessary for any indication,” and won’t reimburse patients for their use, according to the insurer’s most recent medical policy update bulletin. (Morgenson, 8/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
New Rules Look To Make Insurance Contracts More Transparent For Investors
Investors should see clearer and more up-to-date numbers about the financial health of U.S. life insurers under a long-planned set of changes to insurance accounting unveiled Wednesday, rule makers say. The changes, which take effect in 2021, will affect the way companies value their long-term insurance contracts like life insurance, long-term care policies and annuities. They are intended to provide “increased transparency and better understanding of the economics,” said James Kroeker, vice chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the panel that sets accounting rules for U.S. companies. (Rapoport, 8/15)
