The FINANCIAL -- CVS/pharmacy, the nation's leading retail pharmacy, announces today the launch of Project Health, a wellness program delivering more than $21 million worth of free health screenings to multicultural communities.

The program, according to Justmeans, aims to prevent disease through early detection, grew from CVS/pharmacy's highly successful To Your Health/A Su Salud campaigns. This year, Project Health will offer an array of free comprehensive health risk assessments and screenings during five disease-specific national health awareness months from American Heart Month to Diabetes Awareness Month. Over 1,000 Project Health events are scheduled for 2012 in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC. Events are also planned at CVS/pharmacy locations in Puerto Rico.
 
Project Health is a part of efforts by CVS/pharmacy to improve access to preventive care and ensure that cost is not a barrier to important services, like professional health assessments and screenings. Project Health events, while offered to address and raise awareness of ethnic health disparities, are open to everyone and will not require an appointment.
 
Medical personnel will be on hand to provide diabetes, blood pressure, cholesterol and osteoporosis screenings, and examine patients for oral care issues.  Referrals for mammograms and pap smears will also be provided as well as consultations with nurse practitioners and CVS pharmacists. A selection of screenings will be available at each event.
 
Once screened, CVS/pharmacy will help patients through on-site consultations with bi-lingual nurse practitioners who will analyze the results and refer patients to no-cost or low-cost medical facilities within that neighborhood or to their primary care physician should additional follow-up be required.

In 2011, CVS/pharmacy provided free and low-cost medical screenings and services valued at $150per person through the To Your Health/A Su Salud programs.  Over 162,000 people were screened during last year's events, underscoring the demand for these important services. The Project Health events will be held at designated CVS/pharmacy locations on weekdays only from 3 – 7 pm daily with no appointment necessary during American Heart Month (February), National Minority Health Month (April), Immunization Awareness Month (August), Dental Hygiene Awareness Month (October) and Diabetes Awareness Month (November).

CVS Caremark is committed to serving people from all walks of life, diverse cultures and lifestyles within the markets in which we operate. As part of these efforts, CVS/pharmacy conducts Project Health in multicultural communities across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, stocks stores with a product assortment that appeals to diverse cultural groups, provides in-language signage where appropriate and distributes prescription medication related information in multiple languages.

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