About 60 percent of life expectancy is driven by behavioral, social and environmental factors including family, education, housing, and access to fresh food. To improve patient engagement and outcomes within our communities, CVS Health has expanded its annual Project Health free health screening campaign to the Sacramento area. Over the next two months, CVS Health will offer 32 free health screening events across area CVS Pharmacy locations.
With no appointment necessary, community members will have access to preventive screenings including blood pressure, body mass index, glucose and cholesterol, to help identify chronic conditions before they become life-threatening illnesses. Once screened, patients can consult with on-site bilingual nurse practitioners or physician assistants to discuss their results and those requiring additional follow up care will be referred to no-cost or low-cost medical facilities or to their primary care physician.
Earlier this year, following its completed acquisition of Aetna, CVS Health announced the Building Healthier Communities initiative, a $100 million commitment to making community health and wellness central to the newly combined company’s charge for a better world.
“CVS Health is committed to expanding access to quality and affordable care, both through our retail footprint and with national and local non-profits and organizations who share our belief that better health starts at the community level,” said Garth Graham (pictured at right), vice president of Community Health and Impact, CVS Health. “We are thrilled to be here today in Sacramento celebrating the expansion of Project Health and look forward to providing local residents with free health screenings over the next two months as part of our commitment to building healthier communities.”
The event also included the presentation of a $75,000 grant from the CVS Health Foundation to the Sacramento Native American Health Center to help expand opioid treatment options locally.
Project Health has delivered more than $127 million in free health care services to nearly 1.7 million people in multicultural communities with a large number of uninsured or underinsured Americans. Sacramento is one of five cities in California where a total of 256 Project Health screenings will take place this year. Events are also occurring in Los Angeles, and took place earlier this year in Fresno and San Francisco. Project Health will be coming to the San Diego area in July, and to additional markets this fall.
For more details on Project Heath, read the press release or visit www.cvs.com/projecthealth (in Spanish: www.cvs.com/proyectosalud).