CVS to open tech development center in Boston

CVS to open tech development center in Boston

CVS Health is planning to open a technology development center in Boston this winter, according to the Boston Globe report.

The company’s chief digital officer Brian Tilzer said the CVS Health Digital Innovation Lab will accommodate about 100 people, who will be working on “building customer-centric experiences in health care.”

Of those 100 people, some will move from CVS headquarters in Woonsocket and some will be new hires, occupying the new 15,000-square-foot office, at 116 Huntington Ave.

In recent months, CVS has embarked on a wide-scale effort to embrace digital media, having — for example — tested videoconferencing with doctors in some of its MinuteClinics, and communicated via SMS with customers about their prescriptions. The idea, Tilzer said, is to create a “seamless experience” to customers, whether they are interacting with the company on the Web, via a mobile phone, or in one of its 7,800 stores.

In recent months, CVS has embarked on a wide-scale effort to embrace digital media.One of the goals of the new tech hub is to connect with start-ups that are developing health care-related products and services. “We can be an ideal learning lab for early-stage companies,” Tilzer said.

Earlier this year, the company announced it would begin sharing electronic health record information on patient visits and prescriptions with Lahey Health in Burlington, Baystate Health in Springfield, and other providers.

CVS Health ranks 12th on the 2014 Fortune 500 list. In 2013, it reported $127 billion in revenue.