Lehigh Valley Health Network, CVS Health sign five-year partnership

Lehigh Valley Health Network has announced a five-year strategic affiliation with CVS Health, building on an existing relationship between the two entities.

The agreement, signed May 1, focuses on the co-branding of preventative care programs, according to a June 24 news release. Through the sharing of electronic health records, CVS and Lehigh Valley Health Network will identify patients with potential health challenges and provide those patients with proactive care.

CVS, a national retail pharmacy and pharmacy benefit manager, headquartered in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, has been working with Lehigh Valley Health Network, or LVHN, since 2015.

According to Dr. Debbie Salas-Lopez, LVHN’s chief transformation officer, connecting the dots between the patient, pharmacy, physician and health network will help close gaps in patient care, reduce unnecessary hospital visits and lower overall health costs.

“CVS Health has proven to be a productive partner in multiple programs to improve the health of populations in the communities that we both serve,” said Dr. Brian Nester, president and CEO of Lehigh Valley Health Network. “We are now taking this strategic alliance to the next level. By combining our competencies and commitment to community health, we are well-positioned to achieve unprecedented degrees of consumer engagement, innovation and value-based care.”

Nester said joint cooperation on key programs already had begun prior to the agreement’s signing and will continue to expand. The programs include LVHN’s mobile mammography coach; training in the use of Naloxone, a drug used to treat narcotic overdose, at several area CVS locations; the collection of unwanted prescription drugs at CVS locations; and the Rally in the Valley, a community event held at SteelStacks in Bethlehem to support those recovering from drug and alcohol abuse.

“Together, we are bringing our expertise and care to local communities throughout the Lehigh Valley region to help tackle major public health challenges and enable continuity across the health care continuum for the patients we collectively serve,” said Robert Brooks, senior vice president of Health System Alliances for CVS Health.

CVS Health has more than 150 retail locations within the LVHN geographic service area.

Lehigh Valley Health Network is a regional hospital and health care system that includes eight hospital campuses throughout the Lehigh Valley.