CVS Health starts new clinical trial business

CVS Health has introduced a new business aimed at expanding access to clinical trials building on knowledge gained in the quest to develop a COVID-19 vaccine.

According to a news release, the new business, Clinical Trial Services, will initially focus on scaling three capabilities: precision patient recruitment, clinical trial delivery, and real-world evidence generation and studies. The overall goal is to create a more efficient, convenient experience in order to retain participants and increase the effectiveness of the research.

"Traditionally low patient enrollment, diversity and engagement coupled with inconvenient trial sites, challenging study participation requirements, including the length of participation, show the need to improve the current model particularly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic," Troyen A. Brennan, MD, MPH, executive vice president and chief medical officer of CVS Health, says in the release. "Combining clinical trial expertise from across the CVS Health enterprise with our growing connection to the communities we serve, will help create a new clinical trial experience that works better for participants, health care providers, clinical research organizations and study sponsors."

During the development of the COVID-19 vaccines, CVS Health worked with pharmaceutical companies to help facilitate trials using digital models and screening protocols. The company engaged more than 300,000 volunteers who met study inclusion criteria for the COVID-19 vaccine and helped them connect to studies near their homes, the release says.

Clinical Trial Services will use CVS Health’s expertise in health care and research, including more than 200 in-home clinical trials, real-world evidence studies. And support for peer-reviewed article publication, according to the release.