Walgreens (WBA) and VillageMD Expand Partnership in Chicago
Walgreens Boots Alliance WBA and VillageMD recently announced the opening of the first Village Medical at Walgreens primary care practice in the Chicago area. The addition expands other coordinated primary care practice locations currently open across the country such as Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Texas, Kentucky, Indiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, Georgia and Rhode Island.
Village Medical at Walgreens locations accepts a wide range of health insurance options, including Medicaid and Medicare. Patients can seek care and support through in-person, at-home and telehealth visits as well.
Significance of the Integrated Primary Care Model
Through the partnership, Village Medical physicians and Walgreens pharmacists work together to offer full-service primary care for everyday illnesses and injuries as well as the management of chronic conditions. The team collaborates closely to fill prescriptions immediately following medical visits at the same location if patients prefer so. This ensures their access to high-quality care and medical expertise.
At the practice, which is conveniently situated alongside a Walgreens pharmacy location, physicians and pharmacists are supported with high-tech tools, optimized electronic medical records and reduced administrative tasks. These empower them to focus on providing patient care and achieving positive health outcomes.
News in Detail
According to a published estimate quoted by Walgreens, the number of people in Illinois with three or more chronic diseases is growing and is expected to reach three million in 2030. Through better prevention and treatment of chronic diseases, the survey found that nearly 45,400 lives in Illinois could be saved annually.
While patients may find it overwhelming to keep up with appointments to manage chronic conditions, new and current prescriptions and more, it demonstrates the need for the kind of care Village Medical at Walgreens provides. The combined expertise in primary care and pharmacy allows patients to better manage their care by having a convenient location in their community at the right time.
Recent Developments
On the last reported quarter’s earnings call, Walgreens announced a scalable partnership with TelePharm to expand tele-pharmacy services, improve access to care and provide patients with the flexibility to engage with the company’s pharmacists.
In June 2023, Walgreens and the California-based biotech company, Freenome, announced a multi-year partnership to advance the clinical studies of the latter’s blood-based tests for the early detection of cancer. WBA will leverage its national footprint, patient insights, compliant recruitment technology and local infrastructure to engage diverse patient populations in Freenome’s multi-cancer research program.
In April, the company announced a collaboration with Prothena Corporation, a late-stage clinical biotechnology company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. The insight-driven approach aims to support patient awareness, participation and representation in the clinical trial of Prothena’s Alzheimer’s drug candidate, PRX012. Additionally, the U.S. Healthcare segment of Walgreens and VillageMD announced three new primary care practices in Colorado, two in Fort Collins and one in Longmont.
Updates From Peers
Another bigwig of the retail healthcare industry, CVS Health CVS, too came up with new updates in the same line. CVS with GoodRx GDRX, a leading resource for healthcare savings and information, announced the launch of Caremark Cost Saver last month. Via this program, CVS Caremark’s eligible members will have automatic access to GoodRx’s prescription pricing to allow them to pay lower prices, when available, on generic medications at the pharmacy counter.
Another peer of WBA, Herbalife HLF, continues to make progress in implementing its Transformation Program, which was initiated in 2021 to strategically optimize global business processes. Simultaneously, the company’s new, fully integrated, modernized digital technology platform — Herbalife One — is expected to streamline the company’s business, accelerate data utilization, reduce costs and simplify transactions for its distributors and their customers. The first launch is scheduled in Singapore toward the end of the third quarter of 2023.
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