Pharmacy giant CVS (Woonsocket, RI) recently announced that it will enter the kidney care market. The company will take a stepwise approach in a new initiative that will focus on chronic kidney disease and home-based dialysis.
The company’s first focus will be on patient education and early detection of kidney disease. It also plans to introduce a new home hemodialysis technology designed to make home hemodialysis simple and safe for patients, and to facilitate longer and more frequent treatments.
“While in-center dialysis clinics are currently the most common choice for hemodialysis treatment, published clinical research has shown improved cardiac health, metabolic control, and survival for patients who are treated with longer, more frequent dialysis treatments,” said Bruce Culleton, MD, vice president and chief medical officer, CVS Specialty. “This treatment paradigm is best delivered in the convenience of a patient’s home. CVS Health is uniquely positioned to build a solution that will enable us to identify and intervene earlier with patients to optimize the management of chronic kidney disease, while at the same time making home dialysis therapies a real option for more patients.”
CVS runs walk-in “Minute Clinics” in some CVS and Target stores. These clinics offer treatment for minor illnesses and injuries, vaccinations, and other services.
CVS decided to enter the kidney care field partly owing to its “. . . deep payer relationships at CVS Caremark,” said Alan Lotvin, MD, executive vice president and head of CVS Specialty. “When we get ready to launch this, presumably there’s going to be a payer angle,” Lotvin told MarketWatch, adding that CVS is “looking to work within existing systems.”
In 2017, CVS signed a deal to acquire major health insurer Aetna for $69 billion.