CVS Sees COVID Testing Sites as Part of Bigger HealthHUB Strategy

by Leslie Small

Since acquiring Aetna, CVS Health Corp. has touted its HealthHUB stores — which include expanded clinics, labs for health screening and space for wellness pursuits — as the linchpin of its plan to stand out among other large, diversified firms that include a health insurer. Yet as one analyst pointed out during CVS's first-quarter 2020 earnings call on May 6, that strategy could face new challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic when many people are reluctant to venture outside their homes.

CVS executives said that while the company is indeed seeing less foot traffic at its brick-and-mortar locations, it is still leveraging the power of having a vast retail footprint by offering testing for the new coronavirus.

The firm teamed up with federal, state and local governments to open "large-scale diagnostic testing sites across five states," according to a slide deck that accompanied CVS's earnings presentation. As of May 4, the company had administered nearly 90,000 tests, and it is planning to establish additional testing sites.

As CEO Larry Merlo put it: "We're focused on COVID testing today, but there is a broader universe of diagnostics and monitoring that we see becoming an important part of our HealthHUB strategy."

Merlo also pointed out that virtual visits through the company's MinuteClinic platform rose 600% in the first three months of 2020 compared with the prior-year quarter. Retail prescription home delivery increased more than 1,000% and specialty pharmacy digital refills jumped about 50%.

The effects of the COVID-19 crisis weren't all rosy, however. Jonathan Roberts, CVS's executive vice president and chief operating officer, acknowledged that "the biggest headwind we're seeing now in pharmacy is really around new therapy starts." Because doctor visits have decreased significantly, CVS saw at least a 25% dip in new prescriptions in April compared with the same month in 2019, whereas it normally sees about 7% growth.

Overall in the quarter, CVS recorded adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.91, "well above" the Wall Street consensus of $1.62, as Citi analyst Ralph Giacobbe highlighted in a May 6 investor note. Total revenues increased 8.3% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with the prior-year quarter.

From Health Plan Weekly