“Ideas that matter,
since 1965.”

As our nation responds to the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic, public-private partnerships play a critical role in meeting the needs of the country, especially when it comes to health care.  Pairing the capabilities of federal, state, and local governments with private sector innovation and scale is more critical than ever in responding to the nation’s needs.  CVS Health is proud to be one of these partners and one of the companies answering the call to action for our country. 

We know that in order to re-open the country, testing is key. CVS Health is utilizing its expansive community presence to bring COVID-19 testing closer to home. We were the first retailer to open a large-scale test site and currently operate sites in five states through partnerships with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and governors in Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Rhode Island. These sites complete approximately 1,000 tests per day, and we have been able to provide real-time results for 30,000 individuals each week. 

We were the first retailer to open a large-scale test site and currently operate sites in five states through partnerships with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and governors in Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Rhode Island.

By the end of May, we will significantly expand our testing capabilities by offering self-swab tests at CVS Pharmacy locations across the country, subject to availability of supplies and lab capacity. Testing will take place in parking lots and at drive-thru windows – not in our stores, which will remain open to customers. This expansion will give us the capacity to potentially process up to 1.5 million tests per month.

An important consideration in our testing strategy is the reality that minority and other underserved communities have been disproportionately impacted by the virus. We are also developing mobile solutions that will allow us to join with health care professionals to bring testing capabilities to these communities. Those same services can be used for businesses that will begin to re-open in the coming weeks and months.

While testing is critical to reopening the nation, we know that we have to do everything we can to ensure patients, providers, and consumers are all getting what they need. CVS Health is helping patients access care by waiving cost sharing for COVID testing and treatment for our Aetna members, and by making telemedicine more available. We are supporting health care providers and clinicians so they can focus on critical patient care and working with hospitals and providers, like UCLA Health and Piedmont Healthcare to create hospital bed capacity during the pandemic. We have enhanced our existing home infusion capacity and capabilities through Coram to help transition eligible IV-therapy patients to home-based care. To ensure uninterrupted access to prescription medication, we have provided free home delivery, offered 90-day prescriptions, and waived early refill limits so patients do not need to leave their homes.

While testing is critical to reopening the nation, we know that we have to do everything we can to ensure patients, providers, and consumers are all getting what they need.

What we have been able to accomplish so far could not be done without the tireless efforts of CVS Health employees. Whether it is overseeing test sites, providing medication and care, or ensuring our stores are stocked with essential goods, we are inspired by our colleagues every day. They are part of an army of countless health care professionals and frontline workers who have brought the country together through their selfless acts. We owe them all a debt of gratitude.

As CVS Health and so many others work to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, we also are thankful for the on-going work by federal, state and local government leaders to provide the resources necessary to meet this challenge.  In your community and nationally, we are committed to continuing to partner to ensure our country’s critical needs are met during this time and to using the proven innovation of public-private partnerships to lead us to a safe and healthy future beyond COVID-19.  

Thomas Moriarty is the Executive Vice President, Chief Policy and External Affairs Officer, and General Counsel for CVS Health