CVS Health is expanding its CarePass membership program nationally as it seeks to shore up its existing business in the face of new competitors like Amazon.
CarePass – often considered CVS Health’s response to Amazon Prime – offers a number of benefits including free one or two day delivery on most prescription medications and purchases, a discount on items under the CVS Health brand, access to a 24/7 pharmacist hotline and a $10 monthly store credit that can be used on select items.
Pharmacists on the company’s hotline are on hand to help answer questions about a customer’s medication and refer out to additional tools or services.
Membership to CarePass costs $5 a month or a discounted $48 annual fee and also offers free one or two day delivery for eligible purchases of CVS.com. To qualify for CarePass benefits, members must already have signed up for the company’s customer loyalty ExtraCare Rewards Card.
CarePass members are also provided additional discounts on CVS Health brand items which include over-the-counter medications, vitamins and supplements and can be used in retail stores and online. CVS also promises to roll out additional healthcare related perks like a complimentary sports physical as it looks to continue to build out its healthcare delivery services.
Alongside initiatives like CarePass, CVS Health has been steadily building out its national network of HealthHUBs, which are part of the pharmacy chain’s initiative to leverage its wide geographic distribution as a new front door to the healthcare system in the wake of the company’s blockbuster acquisition of Aetna last year.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Earlier this year, the retail pharmacy giant announced plans to open up 1,500 HealthHUB locations by 2021, which offer additional health services like phlebotomy and exam rooms for health screenings.
Recently, the company also announced plans to boost its direct-to-consumer telehealth offering by making it available in 26 states and Washington, D.C. Enabled through a partnership, the $59 telehealth visits are available to patients two years and older who are matched with a board-certified health care provider.
The company initially piloted CarePass in the Boston Area and said the program was able to drive a 15 to 20 percent increase in customer purchases while also appealing to a wide array of customers. In the company’s test markets 20 percent of CarePass members were millennials.
“We are thrilled to expand CarePass nationally, bringing simplified value to our customer while making it easier for them to care for themselves and their families,” CVS Pharmacy President Kevin Hourican said in a statement.
“Initial customer response has exceeded our expectations with members utilizing the program’s full benefits and becoming more engaged across all of our digital offerings.”
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