Mass. Insurers to cover drugstore clinic visits

The Boston Globe reports:

Some of the state's largest health insurers say they will cover visits to the retail health clinics expected to open in CVS and Walgreens drugstores later this year, making the clinics attractive options for the treatment of everyday ailments.

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Tufts Health Plan have signed contracts with CVS Caremark, the Woonsocket, R.I., company that operates more than 6,000 pharmacies nationwide. The chain plans to open as many as 28 MinuteClinics in its Massachusetts stores this year and 100 statewide within five years. CVS also is negotiating coverage for clinic services with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the state's largest insurer. Together, the insurers have nearly 5 million members.

The endorsement by insurers is likely to turn retail clinics into major healthcare providers in the state because, for many patients, they will be less expensive than hospital emergency rooms, with less waiting time. Under the contracts signed and being negotiated, retail clinic copayments range from $10 to $25, compared with the $50 to $150 copays most insurers assess for emergency room care.

Competition.