CVS Health Expands Clinical Affiliation with Cleveland Clinic to Increase Access to Patient-Centered Care and Improve Coordinated Health Care Delivery

CVS Health joins Cleveland Clinic's Quality Alliance network to help enhance chronic disease management

Extended relationship broadens care for patients and allows for sharing of treatment guidelines and protocols

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Jul 25, 2017, 08:30 ET

WOONSOCKET, R.I., July 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) and Cleveland Clinic announced today they have expanded their eight-year clinical affiliation to enhance access to care for patients throughout Northeast Ohio and Florida, and improve quality, coordinated delivery of care and health outcomes for patients.

"Our clinical collaboration with Cleveland Clinic has successfully increased access to care for thousands of patients," said Sharon Vitti, Senior Vice President and Executive Director, MinuteClinic. "By expanding and enhancing our affiliation, we will broaden electronic communication between providers in both organizations and leverage population health data to help improve the health outcomes and reduce the cost of care for the patients we serve."

The expanded relationship builds on successes of the clinical affiliation between MinuteClinic and Cleveland Clinic. Through this broadened relationship, MinuteClinic, CVS Pharmacy and Cleveland Clinic will be able to improve access to and coordination of care for patients in the communities they serve, including convenient clinical support, medication counseling, chronic disease monitoring and wellness programs at CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic locations. Joint clinical programs will be developed to address high rates of chronic diseases, such as hypertension, and help patients better manage their medications.

As part of the expanded relationship, CVS Health has joined Cleveland Clinic's Quality Alliance, one of the largest clinically integrated networks of providers collaborating on quality measures that focus on chronic disease management. The two organizations will share standard protocols and quality metrics and review population health data through integrated, secured systems.

"This collaboration enhances the quality of care patients will receive and allows us to oversee their care more seamlessly than we do today," said Michael Rabovsky, M.D., chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Department of Family Medicine. "As part of our Quality Alliance, CVS Health joins our clinically integrated network which uniquely positions us to share treatment guidelines and protocols and puts the patient at the center of a larger system of care when they need it."

MinuteClinic, CVS Pharmacy and Cleveland Clinic will also work toward streamlining and enhancing communication through their Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems. This will include the electronic sharing of messages and alerts about patients' prescription information, visit summaries, diagnosis and treatment protocol, with patient consent, directly between the treating physicians and CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic. The care coordination and communication between health care providers delivers a more comprehensive view of patients, which is integral in health care decision-making and disease management.

"The expanded collaboration with CVS Health also allows us to provide better access to quality care for patients in Florida," said Hermann Stubbe, M.D., chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Florida Department of Family Medicine. "The ability to share information, quality measures and protocols will reduce chronic disease and ultimately improve our patients' quality of life."

About CVS Health

CVS Health is a pharmacy innovation company helping people on their path to better health. Through its more than 9,700 retail locations, more than 1,100 walk-in medical clinics, a leading pharmacy benefits manager with nearly 90 million plan members, a dedicated senior pharmacy care business serving more than one million patients per year, expanding specialty pharmacy services, and a leading stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription drug plan, the company enables people, businesses and communities to manage health in more affordable and effective ways. This unique integrated model increases access to quality care, delivers better health outcomes and lowers overall health care costs. Find more information about how CVS Health is shaping the future of health at https://www.cvshealth.com.

About Cleveland Clinic

Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. U.S.News & World Report consistently names Cleveland Clinic as one of the nation's best hospitals in its annual "America's Best Hospitals" survey. Among Cleveland Clinic's 49,000 employees are more than 3,400 full-time salaried physicians and researchers and 14,000 nurses, representing 120 medical specialties and subspecialties. The Cleveland Clinic health system includes a 165-acre main campus near downtown Cleveland, nine community hospitals, more than 150 northern Ohio outpatient locations – including 18 full-service family health centers and three health and wellness centers – and locations in Weston, Fla.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Toronto, Canada; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and London, England. In 2015, there were 6.6 million outpatient visits, 164,700 hospital admissions and 208,807 surgical cases throughout the Cleveland Clinic health system. Patients came for treatment from every state and 180 countries. Visit us at www.clevelandclinic.org. Follow us at www.twitter.com/ClevelandClinic.