2 weeks Ago By Bruce Japsen, Senior Contributor
New CVS Health chief executive officer David Joyner promoted an internal executive, Prem Shah, as ...
[+] group president of the company and hired from the outside a well known former UnitedHealth Group executive, Steve Nelson, to run Aetna, the nation’s third largest third largest health insurer, the company said Wednesday, November 6, 2025. In this photo is CVS pharmacy and convenience store, building exterior, New York City, New York, USA. (Photo by: GHI-Plexi Images/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) New CVS Health chief executive officer David Joyner promoted an internal executive, Prem Shah, as group president of the company and hired former UnitedHealth Group executive Steve Nelson to run Aetna, the nation’s third largest health insurer.
The appointments, announced Wednesday, come on a day CVS reported net income of just $87 million, or 7 cents a share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30. That’s a huge drop off from the third quarter of last year when the company had net income of more than $2.
2 billion, or $1.75 per share. The third quarter is the first earnings report issued under Joyner, who was promoted less than a month ago to replace Karen S.
Lynch, who stepped down . CVS Health has struggled to control costs in its Aetna health insurance businesses and its retail pharmacies have struggled, contributing to the company’s sagging share price. Though revenues were up more than 6% to $95 billion in the quarter, profits plummeted “primarily due to a decline in the health care benefits segment’s operating results, which reflect continued utilization pressure and premium deficiency reserves of approximately $1.
1 billion recorded in the third quarter of 2024, related to anticipated losses in the fourth quarter of 2024 within the Medicare and individual exchange product lines.” Medicare Advantage plans have been struggling this year as seniors with a pent up demand for healthcare services following the Covid-19 pandemic seek care and submit claims to their health insurers. Medicare Advantage plans contract with the federal government to provide traditional coverage available in traditional Medicare plus extra benefits and services to seniors, such as disease management and nurse help hotlines with some also offering vision, dental care and wellness programs.
Election Betting Odds: Trump Hits 99% On Polymarket, Kalshi As More Election Results Come In Election 2024 Live Updates: Donald Trump Wins Presidential Race, AP Projects New Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox Warning—Do Not Use These Websites But Joyner is looking to the future to right the ship while committing to the diversified portfolio of businesses CVS has that include: drugstores and an array of outpatient services and primary care clinics; the Caremark pharmacy benefit management company; and Aetna, which has more than 27 million medical members including more than 4.4 million enrolled in its Medicare Advantage plans. “As group president, Shah will be responsible for the operational performance and integrated value creation across CVS Caremark, CVS Pharmacy, and the company’s health care delivery businesses,” CVS said of the 44-year-old executive who joined the company in 2013 and has held various leadership roles.
Shah was most recently executive vice president and chief pharmacy officer of CVS Health and president of the company’s pharmacy and consumer wellness segment “with oversight and responsibility for the company’s omnichannel pharmacy strategy,” the company said. “Prem is a strong operator and innovator with deep experience across our businesses, and in his role, he will help me and the rest of our leadership team drive improvements in our financial and operational performance across our company,” said Joyner. “I am confident in the future of our integrated model, and that Prem and Steve’s leadership will help further position us to deliver greater value from our integrated business model.
” Meanwhile, Nelson, who is 66 years old, has experience leading several “managed care and health care delivery companies” and most recently served as chief executive officer of the primary care company, ChenMed. Prior to that, he led UnitedHealthcare, the nation’s largest health insurance company and a $200 billion unit of UnitedHealth Group. “Steve is an industry veteran who has successfully led multiple segments of a diverse managed care company and driven innovation and growth throughout his career,” said Joyner.
“I will work closely with him and the team, building upon and accelerating the plan to advance Aetna forward.”.
