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Name: Creagh Milford
Previous title: President of Retail Health, CVS
New title: President of Oak Street Health, a CVS subsidiary
Milford is taking the reins at Oak Street Health effective immediately, according to a LinkedIn post from the executive. He’s replacing Brian Clem, who has served as Oak Street president since 2019 and remained in the role through the company’s acquisition by CVS.
Clem is stepping down to spend more time with his family, according to a CVS spokesperson.
CVS bought Oak Street, a multi-state chain of doctor-staffed medical clinics for seniors, in 2023 for $10.6 billion as the healthcare giant looked to expand its healthcare delivery capabilities. Since then, CVS has invested heavily in Oak Street and worked to integrate the business with its other divisions, including by nudging members of its Aetna health insurance products into Oak Street sites for care.
Though CVS does not disclose whether the division is profitable, Oak Street has seen notable membership growth, with total at-risk members increasing by more than one-third year over year in the first quarter, according to executives.
However, Oak Street is facing similar challenges as other value-based businesses, especially given that Oak Street specializes in contracting with Medicare plans to manage healthcare for their patients.
Seniors, especially those in privatized Medicare Advantage plans, are using more medical care, and reimbursement shelled out by the federal government has yet to catch up. If the disconnect continues, that could lower CVS’ operating income for 2025.
“While very immature, we have seen some signs of pressure in first quarter medical cost trends at Oak Street Health, which we will continue to monitor closely over the next several months as they continue to develop,” CVS CFO Tom Cowhey told investors on an earnings call earlier this month.
Milford, who was trained as an internal medicine physician, first joined CVS in 2021 to oversee the company’s virtual care portfolio before working his way up the ranks to president of retail health. In that role, the executive managed a number of CVS’ healthcare delivery plays, including its MinuteClinic facilities and mental health and virtual care assets, according to Milford’s LinkedIn.
Milford is staying on as interim president of retail health for the near future, he said on the social media platform.
