WOONSOCKET – CVS Health Corp. issued a growth-strategy plan Tuesday as part of its 2019 Investor Day that include the expansion of the company’s HealthHUB pilot program.
The program, which launched in February at three stores in Houston, features expanded services at CVS retail locations, including expanded offerings at CVS Pharmacy MinuteClinic locations, more personalized pharmacy support, health and nutritional services, and expanded offerings of health and wellness products and services.
The company said that HealthHUBs also include community spaces and digitally enabled offerings, including wellness rooms that are available for CVS professionals and community partners to host group events, including health classes and potentially yoga classes.
The program will initially expand to Atlanta, Philadelphia, Southern New Jersey and Tampa, Fla., this year but the company expects to have 1,500 hubs by 2021.
The company also said that it will optimize government programs, introduce new risk-based carve-outs, develop programs aimed at complex conditions including chronic kidney disease and create new analytics products.
CVS emphasized that its use of data to improve patient outcomes and its integration with Aetna are expected to realize more cost savings.
The company also released 2019 financial expectations for 2019, including a net income range from $6.4 billion to $6.6 billion. CVS also expects to pay $2.6 billion in dividends to shareholders for the full year.
“Our goal is to fundamentally transform the consumer health experience for the millions of Americans we interact with every day, while creating value for our patients, members, partners and shareholders,” said Larry J. Merlo, president and CEO of CVS Health in the press release outlining the new initiative. “We have combined with Aetna to build a powerful and unique business model that will guide our journey to becoming the most consumer-centric health company.”
The company is also scheduled to attend a hearing Tuesday regarding the approval of the CVS and Aetna merger by a federal judge, which is required under the Tunney Act. The judge, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon, previously called for or testimony from witnesses who object to the Justice Department’s decision to approve the acquisition of Aetna by CVS.
