By Shelby
Livingston | January 18, 2019
CVS
Health and Walmart have made up mere days after announcing a bitter break-up. The two companies said they inked a new
multi-year contract on Friday, allowing certain CVS pharmacy benefit management
customers to continue filling prescriptions at Walmart drugstores.
"This new agreement accomplishes our top priority and enables Walmart to continue participating in CVS Caremark's commercial and managed Medicaid pharmacy networks and provides enhanced network stability for our clients and their members," said Derica Rice, president of CVS Caremark, CVS' PBM arm.
On Tuesday, CVS said Walmart demanded reimbursement increases that CVS could not agree to, and as a result said Walmart chose to leave certain PBM networks. Walmart pushed back, saying it was "CVS' behaviors that are putting pressure on pharmacies and disrupting patient care" and suggesting that CVS was capitalizing on its "unregulated power."
Had the two companies not resolved their dispute, Medicaid beneficiaries and people whose employers contract with CVS Caremark for drug benefits would have been unable to fill prescriptions at Walmart.
"This new agreement accomplishes our top priority and enables Walmart to continue participating in CVS Caremark's commercial and managed Medicaid pharmacy networks and provides enhanced network stability for our clients and their members," said Derica Rice, president of CVS Caremark, CVS' PBM arm.
On Tuesday, CVS said Walmart demanded reimbursement increases that CVS could not agree to, and as a result said Walmart chose to leave certain PBM networks. Walmart pushed back, saying it was "CVS' behaviors that are putting pressure on pharmacies and disrupting patient care" and suggesting that CVS was capitalizing on its "unregulated power."
Had the two companies not resolved their dispute, Medicaid beneficiaries and people whose employers contract with CVS Caremark for drug benefits would have been unable to fill prescriptions at Walmart.
"We
are pleased to have reached fair and equitable terms with CVS Caremark that are
in the best interest of our customers, and we are glad our CVS Caremark
customers will be able to continue saving money and living better," said
Sean Slovenski, a Walmart senior vice president. "We believe in putting
our customers first by providing value and keeping our everyday low-price
promise."
Shelby
Livingston is an insurance reporter. Before joining Modern Healthcare in 2016,
she covered employee benefits at Business Insurance magazine. She has a
master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of
Journalism and a bachelor’s in English from Clemson University.
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