CVS Caremark's Retail Health Clinic Poised to Help Meet Need for Care Driven by Health Care Expansion

WOONSOCKET, R.I., May 4 /PRNewswire/ -- As MinuteClinic passes the milestone of its first decade of delivering convenient access to quality care and with the U.S. facing an historic expansion of the market for primary health care, the network of retail health clinics operated by CVS Caremark is poised to help primary care physicians handle the influx of 32 million citizens who will gain access to health insurance beginning in 2014, a company official said Tuesday.

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Troyen A. Brennan, MD, MPH, EVP and Chief Medical Officer of CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), the parent of MinuteClinic, speaking at a Health Affairs Reinventing Primary Care conference in Washington D.C., outlined how the walk-in retail clinic model has "come of age" just as the need for new access points for basic health care is becoming more acute because of the growing shortage of primary care physicians, and with an influx of new patients needing care.

The good news, Brennan said, is that MinuteClinic is well-liked by patients they serve and consistently receives better than 90 percent customer satisfaction rates while achieving good outcomes for their patients. In addition, the clinic is experiencing growing acceptance by commercial insurers and doctors, who at one time viewed the business with skepticism but have come to view clinics as complementary to their practices.

"We are developing key relationships with integrated delivery systems in metropolitan areas, and we are expanding services beyond MinuteClinic's traditional focus on acute family illnesses. We will be including health promotion and chronic disease monitoring and prevention as part of our future services," Brennan said.

MinuteClinic last week signed an agreement with Catholic Health West, the eighth largest hospital provider in the nation, to collaborate on high quality, affordable health care services in communities throughout the Phoenix, AZ metropolitan area. MinuteClinic also has forged collaborations with Allina Hospitals & Clinics in Minnesota and the Cleveland Clinic. Brennan said the company expects to be announcing several additional relationships in the months ahead.

MinuteClinic was launched in 2000 and has served more than seven million patients over the past decade. The company has seen six million of those patients since 2007, reflecting steady growth that is based on:

• Providing convenient walk-in access to care by locating in CVS/pharmacy stores and offering extended night and weekend hours. "Customers can receive care for uncomplicated illnesses at times that are convenient to them without an appointment," Brennan said.
• Providing quality care at relatively low costs. A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in September 2009 found that services for the similar illnesses by MinuteClinic were, on average, significantly less costly than services provided in a doctor's office or emergency room service. The same study found the quality of MinuteClinic service was on a par with those provided in a doctor's office and emergency room.  
• Sixty percent of MinuteClinic patients do not have a primary care physician.  MinuteClinic plays an important role for these patients as a convenient source of care, and also refers patients to local physicians to develop medical home relationships.

In addition, MinuteClinic was the first retail health care provider to be accredited by the Joint Commission and in 2009 was re-accredited. MinuteClinic staff adheres to national standards of practice as established by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians and the Institute for Clinical Systems.

MinuteClinic locations are staffed by board certified Family Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants who evaluate, recommend treatment and provide patient education. If the clinician believes the patient requires treatment at a higher level of care, they refer the patients and have the ability to send the clinical record to the patient's primary care physician.

"As health reform is implemented by Health and Human Services, we believe retail clinics offer complementary care that can help better manage medical costs," Brennan said. "MinuteClinic is a market innovation that should be considered as part of the solution to providing care to all our citizens," Brennan said.

About MinuteClinic

MinuteClinic is a division of CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS), the largest pharmacy health care provider in the United States. MinuteClinic launched the first retail health care centers in the United States in 2000 and is the first provider to establish a national presence, with approximately 500 locations in 25 states and the District of Columbia. By creating a health care delivery model that responds to consumer demand, MinuteClinic makes access to high-quality medical treatment easier for more Americans. Nationally, the company has generated more than seven million patient visits, with a 90% customer satisfaction rating. MinuteClinic consistently brings innovation to the marketplace and sets new standards for clinical quality that exceed the national guidelines established for store-based clinics. MinuteClinic is the first retail health care provider to receive accreditation (2006) and reaccreditation (2009) from The Joint Commission, the national evaluation and certifying agency for nearly 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. For more information, visit www.MinuteClinic.com.

About CVS Caremark

CVS Caremark is the largest pharmacy health care provider in the United States. Through our integrated offerings across the entire spectrum of pharmacy care, we are uniquely positioned to provide greater access, to engage plan members in behaviors that improve their health, and to lower overall health care costs for health plans, plan sponsors and their members. CVS Caremark is a market leader in mail order pharmacy, retail pharmacy, specialty pharmacy, and retail clinics, and is a leading provider of Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plans. As one of the country's largest pharmacy benefits managers (PBMs), we provide access to a network of more than 64,000 pharmacies, including approximately 7,000 CVS/pharmacy® stores that provide unparalleled service and capabilities. Our clinical expertise includes one of the industry's most comprehensive disease management programs. General information about CVS Caremark is available through the Company's Web site at http://info.cvscaremark.com.

SOURCE CVS Caremark