Walgreens completes tender offer for I-trax

DEERFIELD, Ill. Walgreens has completed its tender offer for I-trax, a healthcare operator that runs clinics through its CHD Meridian Healthcare and ProFitness Health Solution subsidiaries.

In March, Walgreens announced that it was pursuing I-trax and, at that time, the company also announced that it had signed an agreement to purchase Whole Health Management, another healthcare operator that operates clinics in almost 70 locations.

The plan for Walgreens is to add these two companies with its own clinics, operated by Take Care Health Systems. Take Care currently operates 160 clinics in 13 states and plans on having 400 more clinics in operation by the end of this year.

“We are very pleased to have successfully completed the tender offer and to be moving forward to extend our ‘Main and Main’ strategy to include health and wellness services at the worksite,” said Walgreens chairman and chief executive officer Jeffrey Rein. “The positive response we’ve received for our new Health and Wellness division from all corners of the healthcare and retail industries has been gratifying. We’re particularly pleased to be hearing from employers across the country who are excited about the prospects of working with Walgreens in new ways.”

Rein added, “The acquisition of these two market leaders truly transforms Walgreens in the healthcare space and reinforces the company as a trusted consumer brand in the eyes of our customer base. We’re looking forward to working with the entrepreneurs at both I-trax and Whole Health to grow the business and benefit from our respective expertise and strengths. We have already started planning our integration activities and are confident of realizing significant additional value for our shareholders.”

Walgreens Health & Wellness division will be based in Conshohocken, Pa., and will be run by Hal Rosenbluth, co-founder of Take Care Health Systems, newly-named president of this division and corporate vice president of Walgreens. The combination of I-trax and Whole Health Management will operate under the name Take Care Employer Healthcare Solutions.