February 18, 2019 via CNBC –

Fresh off its purchase of Aetna, drugstore chain CVS is refashioning itself as a full-service health care provider.

The company announced last week that it’s testing its new HealthHUB store format at three Houston, Texas, locations. While the retailer will continue to offer health, beauty and personal care products, the new model will allocate more than one-fifth of a physical location to health services.

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In addition to flu shots and prescription refills, the new “hubspots” will focus on chronic care management for conditions like sleep apnea and diabetes. They’ll also include health kiosks for measuring blood pressure, digital apps for weight loss and in-store dietitians for nutrition lessons.

“That has the potential to encourage more store traffic and increase store sales,” said Ana Gupte, stock analyst at SVB Leerink.

CVS, which has been suffering from slowing sales due to increased competition online from Amazon, is betting the ramp up in health services will bring customers back through its doors. The drugstore company operates about 10,000 physical stores, and over one-tenth of those locations already offer MinuteClinics, its retail clinic service. CVS employs about 40,000 health care professionals.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-cvs-is-becoming-a-full-service-health-care-provider/