Larry Merlo talks to prominent business, government leaders about what CVS Caremark can do to cut costs, improve outcomes

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — Looking to further spread awareness about how CVS Caremark can leverage its unique business model to help consumers, health plans, physicians and hospitals cut healthcare costs and improve health outcomes, CVS Caremark president and CEO Larry Merlo took to the stage as the guest speaker at Thursday’s Detroit Economic Club meeting.  



The meeting was held at the Westin Book Cadillac in Detroit. The Detroit Economic Club provides a platform for international dignitaries, business and government leaders who represent the changing global environment. The group offered a prime audience of key stakeholders for Merlo to share with business leaders — large healthcare payers — how the company is working to reinvent pharmacy.



During his presentation, “Reinventing Pharmacy for Better Health,” Merlo shed light on the many reasons why the nation's healthcare system is stressed, including an aging population, the prevalence of chronic disease and increasing medication non-adherence. It is no secret that medication adherence is a major public health problem, resulting in about $300 billion a year in unnecessary medical treatment.



Merlo then outlined the solutions that CVS Caremark offers, such as its Pharmacy Advisor program, which has increased adherence rates up to 3.9% and returns $3 in savings for every $1 spent on counseling, accordint to studies.



The counseling program is available to CVS Caremark members who are diagnosed with certain chronic conditions and provides them with key information about their prescribed therapy when they are most receptive to these messages — face-to-face when members are filling a prescription at the pharmacy or by phone from the Pharmacy Advisor Call Center when members choose home delivery. It covers 10 chronic conditions, including asthma, breast cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, depression and osteoporosis



Merlo also touched upon its recent acquisition of Coram, one of the nation's largest providers of infusion services. Clearly, the acquisition of Coram — as well as the rollout of its new Specialty Connect prescription services program — greatly expands the company’s competitive offerings in specialty services. With the high growth and high costs in specialty pharmacy, and the important role that infusion-based therapies play in that space — an $11 billion market, growing at about 10% a year — these are areas where the company's unique structure and multiple touchpoints allow to deliver considerable cost savings.



In addition, Merlo highlighted the importance of its MinuteClinic business in offering accessible and affordable care to patients. As previously reported by Drug Store News, the clinic provider is working toward its longer-term goal of creating a national platform to support primary care in light of a growing shortage of primary care physicians. And, by 2017, MinuteClinic plans to operate about 1,500 clinics in 35 states.



As anticipated, Merlo discussed during the meeting the company’s recent decision to stop selling cigarettes and tobacco products at its 7,600 CVS/pharmacy locations nationwide by Oct. 1 — a move he has described “as the right decision at the right time.”



In line with the move, CVS/pharmacy announced earlier this week an in-store fundraising campaign to help fight the No. 1 cancer killer of women: lung cancer. Funds raised through the campaign will benefit Lung Force, a new initiative to make lung cancer in women a public health priority, drive policy change and increase research funding.