It launched the pilot program in January and is currently offering counseling services in a dozen stores in Houston, Philadelphia and Tampa, Fla. It plans to expand to 34 stores this year, NPR reported. It is targeting diverse communities where mental health care isn’t readily available.
The program is an extension of CVS’ HealthHUBs, which offer urgent care and wellness products in 650 of its stores.
CVS is negotiating with insurers to cover counseling visits in an attempt to lower the cost of mental health care, according to NPR.
The pandemic has tripled or quadrupled the number of people struggling with symptoms of depression or anxiety, NPR reported. CVS said in May 2020 that it would increase access to mental health services as the COVID-19 pandemic escalated the mental health crisis, particularly among front-line responders.
“The wrath of COVID-19 is not just physical. Mental trauma is the deadly undertow of the pandemic’s first wave. The impact of isolation, fear, uncertainty and loss can be just as deadly as the virus itself,” Karen Lynch, CVS Health’s CEO, said at the time.
Read the full NPR article here.
