CVS Health Corp (NYSE:CVS) has revealed that its contract for the provision of specialty pharmacy services to the Federal Employee Program of Blue Shield and Blue Cross will be terminated after this year is out. Since the contract will end at the close of the year, there will be no material effect on the financial results of the company, however.
This year revenues of about $2.8 billion are expected to be generated by the specialty pharmacy contract. However, even as the contract is terminated, CVS Health will not cease providing PBM (Pharmacy Benefit Management) services to dependents, retirees and federal employees under the Federal Employee Program.
Three-year contract
With CVS Health losing the contract, the $5 billion three-year contract that covers federal workers numbering 5.4 million moves to Prime Therapeutics. The start date for the contract will be January 1, 2018.
“Prime offered the most competitive bid, as well as extraordinary care management and member experience capabilities,” Blue Cross Blue Shield Association’s William Breskin, the government programs’ senior vice president, said in a press release.
The specialty drugs that are provided under this contract include some that are expensive and which treat conditions such as cancers and other rare diseases.
Opioid overdose
In other public sector dealings for CVS Health, the drug retailer recently announced that it would be making naloxone available without a prescription in all its outlets in the state of Iowa. Naloxone is a drug used to reverse opioid overdose. This was in a ceremony attended CVS Health executives and state government officials including Km Reynolds, the Lieutenant Governor of Iowa.
By providing Naloxone without a prescription, CVS Health believes it will be able to save lives since the drug is an effective and safe antidote for cases of opioid overdose as family members and first responders will be able to get and administer the antidote more easily. This effort is in line with the drug retailer’s long-standing commitment to help communities meet the challenges posed by drug abuse.
On Friday shares of CVS Health Corp fell by 0.44% to close the day at $78.50.
