CVS Pharmacy Buys Insurance Company…What the CVS Aetna Merger Means to Your Healthcare

A merger occurred in early December that foreshadows a potential change in the landscape of healthcare. CVS pharmacy spent $69 billion to purchase and merge with Aetna, an insurance powerhouse. Over 100 countries in the world do not make $69 billion per year in gross domestic product by comparison. The CVS Aetna merger registers as a major event in the health care market. CVS intends to create a new comprehensive healthcare model that allows consumers to fill more of their healthcare needs at a pharmacy rather than making trips to the doctor’s office or hospital.
Some of the benefits appear very convincing on paper and the transaction carries the potential to begin a new system of health care administration. Having an insurance company and pharmacy under one roof aims to fulfill customer needs according to the medical model of sick care. People will hear a publicized message about accessibility and the availability of medical solutions that all rest under the blanket of convenience. The hidden truth of this merger and projected model of care also accompanies a much more concerning outcome.
The ironic conclusion of the merger and thought process projects to be much more negative than positive. Accessibility to drugs and pharmaceutical solutions do not promote long term health and wellness. Prescription medications do not solve the causes of health issues. Masking symptoms with powerful drugs lowers the standard of health across the country as people perceive a union between health and pharmaceutical drugs due to the temporary relief that drug use provides. Millions of people associate their use of pharmaceutical drugs with obtaining better health and wellness. The incentive for insurance companies to recommend and support the use of more medication through the CVS Aetna merger becomes an even bigger conflict of interest between sick people and their pursuit of better health.
Some experts predict that the CVS Aetna merger will revolutionize the delivery of health care and bypass the need for hospital and doctor visits in order to secure drugs and treatments. The new accessibility benefits a portion of the populace with legitimate needs and specific cases where cutting out the middle man does prove advantageous to the consumer. A downside also exists where the potential for chemical dependency and adverse outcomes associated with pharmaceutical drugs increases.
Current studies reveal an increase in the number of people who prefer a non-medicinal solution to adverse health symptoms. Many thousands of people do not want to take drugs and medicines to temporarily resolve their health issues while risking terrible side effects. A wave of education and information continues to cross the globe and people understand more than ever that true health and function begins with taking care of the body and being proactive about preventing disease rather than waiting for sickness and using powerful drugs in the aftermath. The CVS Aetna merger threatens to limit those wellness options.
America knows the lofty cost of maintaining health insurance. Budgets feel the strain of maintaining coverage. Insurance companies maintain the power to dictate what care options are made available to consumers. A major conflict of interest forms when an insurance company partners with a pharmaceutical distributor and the desires of the patient to pursue better wellness choices becomes jeopardized. Those financially invested in increasing drug sales will want more people on pharmaceutical solutions, directly conflicting the health care wishes of families who want to pursue true health, healing, and function.
The use of pharmaceutical drugs accompanies both the risk of negative side effects and the reality that most health challenges never fully resolve through the use of medications. The best solution begins with a proactive approach to health care that minimizes the risk of needing to enter into the medical delivery system in the first place. The body possesses an immaculate ability to heal and function at a higher level than any drug can manufacture.
Chiropractic care allows the body to heal itself and maintain optimal function by maximizing the health and power of the spine and nervous system. Research from 2007 determined that people who regularly visited a Chiropractor spent 85% less on pharmaceutical costs than those who sought medical intervention for health care needs. The same group that sought natural healing solutions also experienced 60.2% less hospital admissions, had 62% fewer out-patient surgeries and procedures and spent 59% fewer days in the hospital. An alternate model of health care exists that frees people from the cycle of sickness and reliance on medicine. Genuine health care begins with Chiropractic.
 
 
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics May 2007
“Clinical utilization and cost outcomes from an integrative medicine independent physician association: an additional 3-year update.” RL Sarnat, J Winterstein, JA Cambron