Is CVS Health a PBM?

Asked by: Ansel Macejkovic  |  Last update: October 17, 2025
Score: 4.2/5 (19 votes)

The impact of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) As part of CVS Health®, CVS Caremark® plays a critical role in the health care system by negotiating low net costs for our customers while supporting safe and clinically effective products for consumers.

Is CVS considered a PBM?

Today, there are 66 PBM companies, with the three largest – Express Scripts (an independent publicly-traded company), CVS Caremark (the pharmacy service segment of CVS Health and a subsidiary of the CVS drugstore chain), and OptumRx (the pharmacy service segment of UnitedHealth Group Insurance) – controlling ...

Who are the big 3 PBMs?

Staff's latest report found that the 'Big 3 PBMs'—Caremark Rx, LLC (CVS), Express Scripts, Inc. (ESI), and OptumRx, Inc. (OptumRx)—marked up numerous specialty generic drugs dispensed at their affiliated pharmacies by thousands of percent, and many others by hundreds of percent.

When did CVS become a PBM?

1994: CVS launched PharmaCare, a pharmacy benefit management (PBM) company. 1996: CVS Corporation became a standalone company trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the "CVS" ticker. Stanley Goldstein was the company's first chairman.

What type of pharmacy is CVS?

CVS sells prescription drugs and a wide assortment of general merchandise, including over-the-counter drugs, beauty products and cosmetics, film and photo finishing services, seasonal merchandise, greeting cards, and convenience foods through their CVS Pharmacy and Longs Drugs retail stores and online through CVS.com.

CVS Health PBM and Pharmacy Price Changes

33 related questions found

What type of organization is CVS Health?

CVS Health is an American healthcare company that owns CVS Pharmacy, a retail pharmacy chain. The organization also owns pharmacy benefits manager CVS Caremark and Aetna, a health insurance provider, among several other brands and subsidiaries.

What sector does CVS fall under?

Cvs Health Corporation - Overview

In the US, the company has a notable market share in at least three industries: Pharmacies & Drug Stores, Health & Medical Insurance, Dental Insurance and Dental Insurance.

What is the difference between PBM and pharmacy?

The pharmacy, who has already incurred a cost for stocking and dispensing the medication, has no control over any aspect of the medication's sale. It is the PBM who determines the patient's copay and the PBM who determines in advance how much it will reimburse pharmacies for each medication covered under the drug plan.

Is CVS owned by Target?

CVS has operated pharmacies inside Target stores since 2015, when it bought the business from the retailer for around $1.9 billion. Employees affected by the closures will be offered other roles within the company, the CVS spokeswoman added. Customers' prescriptions will transfer to other CVS pharmacies.

What are some PBM companies?

Registered PBMs
  • Aetna Health of California, Inc.
  • Blue Cross of California (Anthem Blue Cross)
  • Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan.
  • California Physicians' Service (Blue Shield of California)
  • Molina Healthcare, Inc.
  • Oscar Healthcare of California.
  • Sharp Health Plan.
  • Sutter Health Alliance (Sutter Health Plan)

Is GoodRx a PBM?

Traditionally, the GoodRx business has operated exclusively in partnership with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to provide pricing to consumers.

Is CVS the largest PBM?

The four largest PBMs collectively have a 70% share of the national PBM market. CVS Health is the largest PBM (21.3% market share), followed by OptumRx (20.8%), Express Scripts (17.1%), and Prime Therapeutics (10.3%).

Are CVS Caremark and Express Scripts the same?

Beginning April 1, 2023, our national pharmacy benefit administrator is moving from CVS Caremark to Express Scripts. The Express Scripts network offers access to 64,000 retail locations (including CVS pharmacies in Target stores) as well as mail delivery services.

What is the problem with PBMs?

PBMs also drive up prescription drug spending by charging insurers a greater amount than they paid to the pharmacy for a drug, a practice known as “spread pricing.” Rather than driving patients to higher-priced drugs, spread pricing keeps some amount of the savings that should accrue to patients.

Who owns Express Scripts now?

On March 7, 2018, it was announced that Cigna would buy Express Scripts in a $67 billion deal. The deal closed on December 20, 2018 at $54 billion, allowing Cigna to start offering new Express Scripts products to its corporate health insurance customers in 2019.

What is the difference between CVS and CVS Caremark?

What is the difference between CVS Caremark and CVS pharmacy? CVS Caremark is an ONLINE Pharmacy, meaning that you get your prescriptions in the mail or overnighted to you. CVS Pharmacy is a walk-in drug store, that also has delivery services available.

Why is CVS shutting down?

“We are at a point where the current pharmacy model is not sustainable,” Wentworth said in June. CVS, the largest US chain, closed 244 stores between 2018 and 2020. In 2021, it announced plans to close an additional 900 stores. Earlier this month, CVS said it planned to cut about 2,900 jobs corporate jobs.

What is the CVS controversy?

The government alleges that by knowingly filling unlawful prescriptions for controlled substances, CVS violated the CSA and, where CVS sought reimbursement from federal healthcare programs, also violated the FCA. The complaint alleges that CVS's actions helped to fuel the opioid crisis.

Is CVS a payer or PBM?

The impact of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs)

As part of CVS Health®, CVS Caremark® plays a critical role in the health care system by negotiating low net costs for our customers while supporting safe and clinically effective products for consumers.

Which PBM does Walgreens use?

(Reuters) - Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc said it would partner with pharmacy benefit manager Prime Therapeutics to reduce drug procurement costs.

What is a PBM often called?

The principal services offered by pharmacy benefit management companies (PBMs) are described. A PBM contracts with employers, insurers, and others to provide accessible and cost-effective benefits to those groups' members.

What company did CVS merge with?

The CVS-Aetna deal is the biggest health care merger in U.S. history.

Who is CVS Health's biggest competitor?

Top Competitors of CVS Health
  • Walgreens Boots Alliance. Website – https://www.walgreensbootsalliance.com/ ...
  • Amazon Pharmacy. Website – https://pharmacy.amazon.com/ ...
  • Rite Aid. Website – https://www.riteaid.com/ ...
  • UnitedHealth Group. Website – https://www.unitedhealthgroup.com/ ...
  • Kroger Health. ...
  • Cigna. ...
  • Costco Pharmacy. ...
  • Capsule.

What segment of pharma is CVS?

CVS operates in four major segments: retail, pharmacy services, specialty pharmacy, and healthcare innovation.