Since its inception in 2006, CVS/pharmacy’s Project Health has been targeting the most underserved communities – primarily Hispanic and African American – who carry the heaviest burden of healthcare disparities and the biggest risk of chronic disease going unchecked. To give you an idea of what that means in terms of addressing the disparity, the number of Hispanic consumers Project Health has served is fast approaching 500,000 – and that translates into nearly $50 million worth of free medical services provided since CVS/pharmacy began holding these events. Overall, the campaign has served about 730,000 customers and delivered more than $72 million worth of free services.

In addition to underserved communities, the latest Project Health campaign launched in Q4 of 2014 has been expanded to also serve the uninsured population in general, due in large part to the passing of the Affordable Care Act. This evolution of the program includes partnerships with health plans to provide insurance information and education for our customers. It also includes expansion into 17 new markets in addition to our 10 core markets (Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.) The addition of these new markets brings our total to 27 U.S. cities served, and the program has also been run in Puerto Rico since 2010.

Some may remember Project Health under its original name, To Your Health (“a su salud”). In 2012, we wanted a name that reflected the expanding mission of the program, and its ongoing success in addressing health disparities and providing better access to care. The name Project Health really resonated with this mission – and with our customers as well, according to the extensive consumer research we did to give them a voice in the matter.

As in our core markets, we have a big enough retail footprint in each of the new markets to do the most good with Project Health; that is, we can run an effective and sustainable campaign with a large number of events spanning over several months. Another criteria is to serve customers in markets where the uninsured rate is higher than the national average, currently about 15%. Early results are showing us that not only are uninsured customers educating themselves about insurance options and more of them are obtaining insurance, but as an added value we’re also able to serve as a resource for consumers who already have insurance, in terms of learning about new options where they can save money.

In fact, we’ve found over the years that the unmatched convenience and access to care provided by Project Health is something customers appreciate whether they have insurance or not. We all know there are times when it can be difficult to see your doctor right away, and Project Health is the perfect antidote because no appointments are required and you don’t have to wait for your doctor’s availability to open up. Other advantages are the level of cultural competence you’ll find at these events, and the fact that they are happening right in the neighborhoods where customers live.

For many, coming to a Project Health event can be the first step toward self-advocacy. The program gives people a temperature check where they can learn their numbers in terms of their health and their risk for chronic disease. For those with a chronic disease already, this is a great opportunity to double-check their numbers as well. Nurse practitioners and CVS pharmacists are available to discuss options for treatment and prevention, whether medication, diet and/or lifestyle, and other resources in the community that they can leverage.

In part two of her article, Dawn-Marie Gray will discuss how Project Health is helping to deliver culturally relevant health care access to its customers, and some of the results that they’ve seen so far, including their Smoking Cessation program.

For more information, visit Project Health in English or Project Health in Spanish.