Vancouver-based digital healthcare company Well Health Technologies has acquired 10 primary-care medical clinics across British Columbia (BC) and Ontario from Loblaw-owned Shoppers Drug Mart.
The deal, made through its subsidiary the Well Health Clinic Network, will see Well Health acquire all primary care medical clinics operated by Shoppers Drug Mart under The Health Clinic by Shoppers banner. The banner is made up of 35 physicians across four clinics in BC and six clinics in Ontario, according to Well Health, and will be rebranded under the Well Clinic name.
Well Health said it expects the new clinics to add approximately $8 million in annual revenue, and will look to staff them with more physicians. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Well Health chief medical officer and president of Canadian clinics, Dr. Michael Frankel, welcomed the clinical and medical teams from the acquired clinics and said Well Health will ensure that these locations support optimal patient outcomes.
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Founded in 2012 by chairman and CEO Hamed Shahbazi, Well Health provides an end-to-end platform for healthcare providers, which includes tools for electronic medical records, practice management, billing, revenue cycle management, and data-protection solutions.
The firm, which trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange, claims more than 34,000 healthcare providers between the United States and Canada use its offerings and that it owns and operates the “largest healthcare ecosystem in Canada” with more than 165 clinics in its portfolio.
Well Health’s aggressive acquisition strategy propelled it to record revenues and profits in 2021. It entered a partnership with MCI OneHealth, now Healwell AI, after acquiring five primary care clinics from the Toronto healthtech firm in May 2023.
Through the partnership, Healwell AI white-labelled its diagnostic software under the name WELL AI Decision Support, which is distributed through Well Health’s marketplace of clinics, and appointed Shahbazi as chairman of its board this past February.
Well Health said its newly acquired clinics will be onboarded through its clinic absorption program, which looks to optimize cost structures as well as integrate digital workflows, patient engagement technologies, and its AI offerings such as AI Voice, AI Inbox Admin, and the aforementioned AI Decision Support.
Feature image courtesy Shoppers Drug Mart.