After piloting its HealthHUB format in a collection of its Houston stores, CVS Health announced during its investor day Tuesday that it’s planning for 1,500 retail locations to follow suit in the next two years.
As CVS has described the hubs, they have more than 20% of the store dedicated to health services including “new product categories, digital tools and on-demand health kiosks, trusted advice and personalized care.”
Its goal is for its locations to serve as “community-based health hubs” that can answer patients’ questions about prescription drugs, insurance coverage and their own health conditions.
The announcement came during an investor presentation in which CVS issued a long-term strategic plan to “accelerate growth” ahead of the day’s proceedings, aimed at skittish investors concerned about its recent financial performance post-merger.
CVS warned that it would see lower revenues as a result of the deal, though its first-quarter numbers did slightly beat expectations.
CVS said during the presentation it expects to expand its hubs in four markets in 2019 including Houston, the Philadelphia/southern New Jersey region, Atlanta and Tampa. Officials said they expect to have nationwide coverage with at least 1,500 hubs by 2021.
It’s part of a larger strategy by the retail giant—which just merged with Aetna—to become an integrated healthcare provider, and CVS has been rapidly expanding its influence in transforming healthcare delivery.
CVS unveiled its first concept stores last year, with CEO Larry Merlo saying launch of those healthcare-focused facilities set a strong foundation for CVS’ future integration goals. It has also focused on using technology to expand its reach to consumers, rolling out a program last fall to offer virtual visits to its retail health clinic, MinuteClinic, through its mobile app.