In perhaps yet another sign of the expanding role of retail healthcare, CVS Health said it is opening a new Digital Innovation Lab in Boston that will serve as a central hub for the Rhode Island-based pharmacy’s digital health team.
The Boston center follows the recent launch of a similar hub near CVS Health headquarters in Rhone Island, and other locations are being scouted while the company “is actively recruiting new talent.”
Boston was an obvious choice for the more than 15,000 square foot location, the company said, given its significant presence in healthcare circles and its emerging health tech economy and health startup landscape.
The new CVS Health Digital Innovation Lab can house approximately 100 employees, with 90 percent of them anticipated as new hires. Plans for the new office include the creation of an open concept workspace that encourages idea-sharing and innovation to produce the nes digital technology that will help enhance the customer experience, the company said.
The attempt to further efforts into digital health follows CVS Health’s launch of smartphone apps and continued expansion of Minute Clinics, along with pharmacy benefit management and mail service pharmacy divisions geared toward prescription management with digital tools.
“The explosion of the city’s tech sector, as well as an increased opportunity to attract top talent in both healthcare and technology in the Greater Boston area, makes this the right move for us,” said Brian Tilzer, senior vice president and chief digital officer for CVS Health, in a release.
