CVS Health is partnering with three proven telemedicine companies to explore how direct-to-consumer telehealth providers, retail pharmacy and retail clinic providers can collaborate to improve patient care.
The collaboration with these three companies— American Well, Doctor On Demand and Teladoc— represents an expansion of CVS Health’s existing telehealth approach, its officials say. Recently, CVS released data that revealed very high levels of patient satisfaction with the quality of care delivered via telehealth at its MinuteClinic retail medical clinics. Satisfaction with quality of care and other factors were measured among patients participating in a pilot program of telehealth care rolled out at MinuteClinic locations in California and Texas in 2014, and the findings were published on-line in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
“During our initial phase of exploration of telehealth in our store-based clinics, we learned that we could deliver excellent quality care and that patients were extremely satisfied with the care provided,” Andrew Sussman, M.D., executive vice president/associate chief medical officer, CVS Health and president, MinuteClinic, said in a statement. “As we examine additional ways to utilize telehealth to improve and expand patient care, we have the opportunity to partner with telehealth organizations in the care of patients at home,” Sussman added.
CVS Health is piloting several different telehealth opportunities, including making telehealth physician care accessible through CVS Health digital properties. CVS Health will also explore enabling MinuteClinic providers to consult with telehealth physicians to expand the scope of care offered at MinuteClinic. In addition, MinuteClinic will continue to provide telehealth care to patients in CVS retail stores and will explore serving as a site for in-person exams to facilitate telehealth medical visits.
