Walgreens push into comprehensive care picks up momentum

Walgreens extended its push into more comprehensive health care with its VillageMD unit acquiring another urgent and primary care chain, Summit Health-CityMD, in a deal worth close to $9 billion.

Walgreens and rival CVS, two retail chains with thousands of locations, have evolved in recent years with a greater focus on overall care for customers, trying to help them avoid chronic health conditions and expensive hospital stays. That goes far beyond their historic focus on store sales and filling prescriptions.

The deal to combine VillageMD and CityMD arrives just two months after CVS Health said it would pay about $8 billion to acquire Signify Health, a technology company that sends doctors and other care providers to people's homes to assess how they are doing and what help they might need.

Walgreens Boots Alliance, which has a 53% controlling interest in VillageMD, will invest $3.5 billion in debt and equity in support of the deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2023.