MinuteClinic will move its headquarters next year from Minneapolis to Woonsocket, R.I, eliminating 150 jobs here, officials confirmed Tuesday.
It amounts to a cutting of the umbilical cord for MinuteClinic, which pioneered the low-cost kiosks staffed by nurse practitioners back in 2000 in Minnesota and spawned a national industry in retail clinics.
Although CVS Caremark Corp. bought MinuteClinic in 2006, the Woonsocket-based drugstore and pharmacy benefits giant had kept MinuteClinic's headquarters in Minneapolis.
Until now.
The move "supports our goal of tighter integration of MinuteClinic with CVS Caremark," said spokeswoman Carolyn Castel. It also will "foster better alignment with CVS Caremark's chronic care, patient engagement and disease management initiatives."
While MinuteClinic started out offering a limited menu of simple services -- treating sinus infections, ear infections and so on -- it is branching out to blood pressure checks and cholesterol screening and other services.
MinuteClinic is the biggest chain of retail clinics in the country, with 500 outlets. Walgreens' TakeCare is second, with about 350 outlets.
The first MinuteClinic employees in Minneapolis will be laid off in January, with most leaving in the second and third quarters of 2010, Castel said. They are in a variety of corporate and administrative positions and may apply for other jobs within the company, she said.
