CVS Health Expands Clinical Affiliation with Cleveland Clinic to Increase Access to Patient-Centered Care and Improve Coordinated Health Care Delivery

WOONSOCKET, R.I., July 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) and Cleveland Clinic announced today they have expanded their eight-year clinical affiliation to enhance access to care for patients throughout Northeast Ohio and Florida, and improve quality, coordinated delivery of care and health outcomes for patients.

"Our clinical collaboration with Cleveland Clinic has successfully increased access to care for thousands of patients," said Sharon Vitti, Senior Vice President and Executive Director, MinuteClinic. "By expanding and enhancing our affiliation, we will broaden electronic communication between providers in both organizations and leverage population health data to help improve the health outcomes and reduce the cost of care for the patients we serve."

The expanded relationship builds on successes of the clinical affiliation between MinuteClinic and Cleveland Clinic. Through this broadened relationship, MinuteClinic, CVS Pharmacy and Cleveland Clinic will be able to improve access to and coordination of care for patients in the communities they serve, including convenient clinical support, medication counseling, chronic disease monitoring and wellness programs at CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic locations. Joint clinical programs will be developed to address high rates of chronic diseases, such as hypertension, and help patients better manage their medications.

As part of the expanded relationship, CVS Health has joined Cleveland Clinic's Quality Alliance, one of the largest clinically integrated networks of providers collaborating on quality measures that focus on chronic disease management. The two organizations will share standard protocols and quality metrics and review population health data through integrated, secured systems.

"This collaboration enhances the quality of care patients will receive and allows us to oversee their care more seamlessly than we do today," said Michael Rabovsky, M.D., chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Department of Family Medicine. "As part of our Quality Alliance, CVS Health joins our clinically integrated network which uniquely positions us to share treatment guidelines and protocols and puts the patient at the center of a larger system of care when they need it."

MinuteClinic, CVS Pharmacy and Cleveland Clinic will also work toward streamlining and enhancing communication through their Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems. This will include the electronic sharing of messages and alerts about patients' prescription information, visit summaries, diagnosis and treatment protocol, with patient consent, directly between the treating physicians and CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic. The care coordination and communication between health care providers delivers a more comprehensive view of patients, which is integral in health care decision-making and disease management.

"The expanded collaboration with CVS Health also allows us to provide better access to quality care for patients in Florida," said Hermann Stubbe, M.D., chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Florida Department of Family Medicine. "The ability to share information, quality measures and protocols will reduce chronic disease and ultimately improve our patients' quality of life."