Logo Image
News|Articles|November 4, 2026

CVS Health to Split Into 2 Public Companies, Separating Retail and Specialty Pharmacy

Expected in the first half of 2028, the planned separation would create a stand-alone retail pharmacy company with nearly 30,000 pharmacists.

On November 4, 2026, CVS Health announced that it intends to separate into 2 independent, publicly traded companies: a health care solutions company built around health benefits, pharmacy benefit management, and care delivery; and a stand-alone retail pharmacy and community health care company that will operate as CVS Pharmacy.1

The decision follows a comprehensive strategic review by the CVS Health board of directors, and the separation is expected to be completed in the first half of 2028.1

How the Businesses Will Divide

The health care solutions company—which will keep the CVS Health name in the interim—will include Aetna, CVS Caremark, CVS Specialty, Oak Street Health, and Signify Health.1 The second company, CVS Pharmacy, will comprise around 9000 CVS retail pharmacies, mail pharmacy, MinuteClinic (including virtual care), and the Health100 technology services business.1

David Joyner, who currently serves as the chairman and CEO of CVS Health, will shift to instead oversee the health care solutions company. Prem Shah, who is currently group president of CVS Health, will become the CEO of CVS Pharmacy. Additional leadership positions and board members will be named at a later date.1

Joyner said the company is making the move “from a position of strength, and a focus on the long term,” pointing to leadership, financial, and operational improvements over the past 2 years. He described the goal as 2 focused companies better positioned to improve consumer engagement, affordability, and care coordination.1

What It Means for Pharmacy

The split carries various implications for pharmacy practice, the most notable being the separation between speciality and retail pharmacy. Specialty pharmacy will remain alongside Caremark and Aetna, while mail pharmacy will move with the retail stores.1

Currently, a patient on an oral oncolytic or a biologic might get specialty fills through CVS Specialty and everything else at a CVS store. After the split, those will be 2 separate companies. That raises practical questions about shared patient records, medication reconciliation, and who coordinates care for patients on complex regimens.2

In retail pharmacy, CVS Pharmacy plans to expand the services offered by its nearly 30,000 pharmacists and to pursue a wider set of partnerships across the health care system, including with payers, pharmacy benefit managers, and manufacturers.1

Declining prescription reimbursement rates have squeezed retail pharmacy margins in recent years.3 Medicare Part D point-of-sale reimbursement for generic drugs fell a median of approximately 22.5% in 2024 after Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services began requiring pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration fees fees to be applied at the point of sale.4

Many pharmacies have turned to clinical services such as point-of-care testing and chronic care management to diversify revenue.5 However, pharmacy personnel—particularly in chain settings—continue to report staffing levels that do not match workload expectations6, raising questions about how an expanded slate of services would be staffed.

Both companies have committed to continued investment in Health100, which CVS describes as a platform for AI-native products and services aimed at affordability, access, and experience challenges in health care.1

CVS emphasized that patients, customers, and clients will continue to receive their medicines, care, benefits, and services without interruption, and that the company will continue to operate as it does today until the separation is complete.1

REFERENCES
  1. CVS Health announces intent to create two distinct leaders in healthcare. News release. CVS Health. November 4, 2026. Accessed November 4, 2026. https://www.cvshealth.com/news/company-news/cvs-health-announces-intent-to-create-two-distinct-leaders-in-healthcare.html
  2. Association of Community Cancer Centers. Care coordination: the role of pharmacy to help manage patients with cancer on oral oncolytics. Oncol Issues. 2021. Accessed November 4, 2026. https://cdn.sanity.io/files/gvduir9b/production/fee9666af0b698386562034a920432d38067cdf4.pdf
  3. Constantino AK. CVS is under pressure and considering a breakup. Here's why that could be risky. CNBC. October 2024. Accessed November 4, 2026. https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/cvs-pressure-considering-breakup-risky-rcna174047
  4. Rome BN, Cai CL, Gibbons JB, Kesselheim AS, Anderson KE. Changes in point-of-sale drug prices after Medicare eliminated retroactive pharmacy fees. JAMA Netw Open. 2026;9(10):e2638776. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.38776
  5. Lyons N, Antrim A. McKesson IdeaShare 2025: independent pharmacies boost revenue and sustainability through clinical services. Pharmacy Times. July 10, 2025. Accessed November 4, 2026. https://www.pharmacytimes.com/view/mckesson-ideashare-2025-independent-pharmacies-boost-revenue-and-sustainability-through-clinical-services
  6. Watanabe L. Report: pharmacy personnel still burdened by working, staffing conditions. HME Business. April 9, 2024. Accessed November 4, 2026. https://hme-business.com/report-pharmacy-personnel-still-burdened-by-working-staffing-conditions/

Related to this article

View more