CVS honored for promoting employee health

Woonsocket, R.I. CVS Caremark said June 26 it has been named as a Gold Award winner for its programs that promote healthy lifestyles among its employees.

The company received the Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles award at the National Business Group on Health's Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. CVS Caremark was recognized with a Gold Award for its CVS Caremark Wellness Program for creating cultural and environmental changes that support employees who have made a commitment to long-term behavior changes.

"It is extremely important to us to provide a healthy workplace for our own 215,000 employees and to help to improve their health and well-being," said V. Michael Ferdinandi, senior VP, human resources, CVS Caremark.

“More than ever, a healthy workforce is critical to helping America's large employers compete in the global marketplace,” said Helen Darling, president of the National Business Group on Health. “CVS Caremark is to be applauded for making health and wellness an integral part of their workplace."

The CVS Caremark Wellness Program encourages company colleagues to be healthy and to take ownership of their health through such programs as "Healthy & Smokefree" (smoking cessation), "Healthy Weight" (nutrition), "Healthy & Fit" (physical activity), "Healthy Mind" (stress management), and "Healthy Outcomes" (preventive screenings, health assessments, flu shots, and maternity management, etc.).

Resources such as Care Advocate Teams of dedicated nurses, decision support tools, preference sensitive condition support, self-directed DVD programs, a quarterly wellness newsletter and disease-management programs are offered to colleagues to assist them in making better healthcare decisions.