The CEO and co-founder of Chicago-based primary care provider VillageMD has resigned, a move that comes as Walgreens Boots Alliance considers selling its stake in the company.
VillageMD spokeswoman Molly Lynch confirmed Wednesday that Tim Barry had resigned as CEO and chairman of the board and that the company’s board of directors had named Jim Murray, director of operations of VillageMD, as interim CEO “effective immediately.” Lynch did not respond to questions about why Barry left.
Deerfield-based Walgreens said in a statement: “We look forward to continuing to partner with Jim Murray as he assumes day-to-day leadership responsibilities. » Murray played “a critical role in leading the company’s turnaround as VillageMD makes significant progress and positions itself for profitable growth,” Walgreens added. A Walgreens representative also did not respond to questions about why Barry resigned.
Walgreens once had big plans to become more of a healthcare destination, in part through VillageMD. Walgreens invested billions of dollars in VillageMD and had planned to install Village Medical clinics in 1,000 of its stores by 2027.
But Walgreens walked away from this project. In March, CEO Tim Wentworth said Walgreens had recorded a $5.8 billion impairment charge related to VillageMD and that VillageMD would close 160 clinics. In August, Walgreens said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it was considering selling all or part of its VillageMD business.
Wentworth said during Walgreens’ latest earnings call that VillageMD was “not a critical part of our future.” Wentworth took over as CEO of Walgreens in October 2023.
During that same earnings call, Wentworth said that Walgreens plans to focus learn more about its “historic strength as a retail pharmacy-led company.” He said on the call that Walgreens plans to close 1,200 of its stores – about 14% of its U.S. locations – over the next three years as it faces continued financial losses.
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