Supporting healthy aging

CVS Health^® is helping older adults maintain vitality through their golden years. 

Americans are aging well, and as a result, the country is facing a milestone demographic moment. In fact, by 2030, one in five Americans will be age 65 or older. This trajectory is redefining the concept of aging: As many people face the prospect of living into their 70s, 80s, 90s, and beyond, merely surviving into old age is not enough. 

“Maintaining vitality and well-being as we grow older is paramount,” says Cathy Moffitt, MD, senior vice president, CVS Health, and chief medical officer, Aetna^®, a CVS Health company. “And with more people living longer, there’s going to be an increased demand on the health care system. We need to work together to develop more integrated and creative health care solutions.”

The meaning of healthy aging

This growing population of senior adults requires new strategies for helping individuals age in a way that focuses on their health and well-being. Broadly speaking, the concept of healthy aging is centered on empowering people to “age with grace,” says Sree Chaguturu, MD, executive vice president and chief medical officer at CVS Health. In practice, this means not only helping individuals manage existing chronic conditions but also providing comprehensive preventive care to improve health by preventing diseases or other health problems. Both are pillars of maintaining overall well-being as the years pass while giving people the knowledge and support they need to understand what matters most to them. “We know that healthy aging looks different for everyone,” says Chaguturu. “It comes down to understanding what your health needs are and how you want to achieve them.” 

Personalized health care is the foundation of healthy aging. To do this effectively, health care providers must meet all patients where they are on their health care journeys. Doing so requires treating each individual patient as exactly that—an individual with a unique medical history, cultural background, support network, socioeconomic status, and health literacy level. “It cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach,” says Joneigh Khaldun, MD, MPH, vice president and chief health equity officer at CVS Health. “Providers must make sure they’re actually taking the time to answer patients’ questions that help them on their individual health care journeys.” 

Research shows that providing aging adults with specific, age-friendly care has significant benefits, including a reduction in the number of hospitalizations and hospital readmissions, improved mobility, and early identification of memory loss and depression.  

With this in mind, CVS Health uses a framework called the 4Ms to customize treatment at its locations across the U.S. These medical clinics located inside select CVS Pharmacy retail locations provide everyday and chronic care services, including preventive health screenings and vaccinations. The 4Ms is part of Age-Friendly Health Systems, which is an initiative of the John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), in partnership with the American Hospital Association (AHA) and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA). The 4Ms system encourages MinuteClinic^® nurse practitioners to discuss medications, mentation (mental health), mobility, and more broadly, what matters with Medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers. As of April 2023, more than 465,000 MinuteClinic patients have received this kind of specialized patient care.

“We can then tailor our health interventions and outcomes according to what we hear from each individual patient,” says Chaguturu, adding that the modality, “provides a much-needed safety net for patients as they age.”

The 4Ms in action

Medication

Many older adults get their prescriptions from multiple sources, including urgent care, primary care providers, and specialists. These disparate channels can make it difficult to keep track of which drugs to take at what time, not to mention remembering what they’re even meant to treat. To provide support and minimize any confusion, CVS Health pharmacists and MinuteClinic providers check in with patients about the state of their medications, asking simple—but vital—questions, such as, “Are you taking your medications?” “Do you know what you’re taking each medication for?” “Do you have any questions about your medications?” “Is there anything else going on with you that we should talk about?”

“Having the support of a professional to not only listen to but also offer structured advice when needed can turn a daunting proposition into something that feels manageable,” says Moffitt. 

Mentation

Depression is a pervasive issue among older adults, many of whom face significant obstacles, such as social isolation, the death of loved ones, and chronic conditions. Even though only 12% of Americans are 65 and older, 18% of suicide deaths occur in this population. Because many seniors can’t easily leave the house for mental health care, CVS Health works to connect seniors in select states with on-demand, virtual mental health and primary care. 

“There is a growing crisis in the older population for mental health and depression. We are very aware of the mental health needs of this demographic, and we are also aware of different ways to meet that need, including virtual health solutions,” says Moffitt. “We want to give them opportunities to be treated in the safety and comfort of their own homes.”

Additionally, all Aetna Medicare Advantage plans cover telehealth visits for primary care, urgent care, and specialty care, including mental health services. Additional telehealth services, including physical, occupational, and speech therapy, substance abuse and opioid treatment, kidney disease education, and diabetes self-management training services, are also available. Depending on location, members are able to schedule telehealth visits 24/7 via MinuteClinic, CVS Virtual Care™, or another network provider offering this service.

Mobility

Aging patients’ mobility is a crucial part of their overarching health care plans. CVS Health pharmacists are trained to ask older adults about their specific situations, from whether they can get in and out of bed or access the bathroom to how their house is laid out, including whether there are any stairs. 

“It is extremely important for providers to do a quick, comprehensive mobility assessment,” says Moffitt. “It often leads to the recognition of care needs that wouldn’t have come up any other way.” 

Through this assessment, MinuteClinic nurse practitioners evaluate if older adults can move safely every day, maintain function, and do what matters. It also ensures that less mobile patients are connected to CVS Health’s range of virtual health care options. 

What matters

Aging with grace is about getting older on your own terms, whether that be prioritizing longevity, vitality, or comfort. By asking patients what matters to them, providers can center patients’ health care around their preferences and goals. It also helps build a foundation of familiarity and trust that can be the basis of care in the decades ahead.

“Supporting healthy aging requires helping patients to maintain overall well-being while preventing other health conditions from arising as best as we can,” says Chaguturu. “It’s important that we have the right tools and services in place to do just that.”