WEBVTT - CVS ESG Report Details 2021 Progress

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<v Speaker 1>You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Messer and

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Quick Takes. Tim Stinovic on Bloomberg Radio Bloomberg Intelligence

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<v Speaker 1>Reporter earlier this year about e s G, saying it

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<v Speaker 1>may surpass forty one trillion assets this year fifty trillion

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<v Speaker 1>by five, making it one third of the projected total

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<v Speaker 1>assets under management globally. Tim, It's a lot. It's what

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<v Speaker 1>investors want, and we often talk with heads and leaders

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<v Speaker 1>within companies about their growing E s G initiatives. One

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<v Speaker 1>of those companies is CVS Health. Joe and Wier is

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<v Speaker 1>Vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability at CVS Health.

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<v Speaker 1>She joins us on Zoom from Rhode Island. Joeanne, good

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<v Speaker 1>to have you with us. How are you? I'm doing well?

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you? Tim? Hi, Carrol Hi well. Earlier this month,

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<v Speaker 1>CVS Health published its first h s G report. Why

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<v Speaker 1>was this the year to do this? Why now? So?

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<v Speaker 1>This is actually our fifteenth annual report. Um. We used

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<v Speaker 1>to call it our Corporate Social Responsibility Report, but as

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<v Speaker 1>you just mentioned, uh, environmental and the social commitments that

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<v Speaker 1>companies make in the way that companies govern them has

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<v Speaker 1>really taken center stage in terms of the business community,

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<v Speaker 1>and so when it comes to reporting into transparency, we

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<v Speaker 1>felt it was important to change the nomenclature and really

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<v Speaker 1>position it as an E s G report, highlighting those

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<v Speaker 1>commitments that our company makes, what's top of line, and

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<v Speaker 1>where do you see that you guys have made the

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<v Speaker 1>most progress. We talked about E s G joan so much,

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<v Speaker 1>and there's certain parts of E s G that are

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<v Speaker 1>much easier for the world for investors to measure, but

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<v Speaker 1>not all of it because it's not apples to apples

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<v Speaker 1>from company to company. So talk to us about your

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<v Speaker 1>initiatives and where you feel like you're making the most

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<v Speaker 1>progress because you can measure it the best. Yeah, I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>I think a really a few critical points to think

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<v Speaker 1>about is, as you just said, you can't be all

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<v Speaker 1>things to all people, and so it's important to do

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<v Speaker 1>what's either called a materiality assessment or a topic prioritization,

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<v Speaker 1>and we did that this year. So as a healthcare company,

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<v Speaker 1>it won't surprise you that when you think about the

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<v Speaker 1>issues we care about, their really centered on the health

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<v Speaker 1>of people, the health of our communities, and the health

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<v Speaker 1>of our planet. And so we set a ten year roadmap.

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<v Speaker 1>I think the second really important thing to think about

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<v Speaker 1>is you have to have near term goals, but you

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<v Speaker 1>also have to have to be thinking about this in

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<v Speaker 1>the long term to be able to have meaningful impact

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<v Speaker 1>in the long range. And so we focus our strategy

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<v Speaker 1>and four key areas. We have four pillars. It's our

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<v Speaker 1>healthy strategy looking a decade out, and we're focused on

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<v Speaker 1>healthy people, healthy business, healthy community, and healthy planet. I

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<v Speaker 1>want to start with just talking about reducing waste, and

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<v Speaker 1>can you give us some figures on how much you've

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<v Speaker 1>reduced waste. So our commitment, I will say, to the

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<v Speaker 1>environment really starts with our commitment to climate. So hopefully

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<v Speaker 1>we'll get to that um. But our company is working

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<v Speaker 1>on reducing our waste, starting with our paper and plastic,

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<v Speaker 1>and so we've diverted about fifty of all of our

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<v Speaker 1>waste to recycling or reuse. You are listening to Bloomberg Business.

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<v Speaker 1>We Carl the US along with Tim Stanivik. We are

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<v Speaker 1>talking about CVS Health annual e s G report, the

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<v Speaker 1>latest one just out about e s G initiatives. More broadly,

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<v Speaker 1>with Joe and Dwyer. She's VP of Corporate Social Responsibility

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<v Speaker 1>and sustainability at CVS Health still with us via zoom

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<v Speaker 1>from Rhode Island. Hey, you know, Joean, I do want

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<v Speaker 1>to get back to what are the things that you

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<v Speaker 1>can really measure so well so that you can say, hey,

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<v Speaker 1>we are really making a constructive impact. So I think

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<v Speaker 1>in our case, when you think about being a healthcare

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<v Speaker 1>innovation company, we within our healthy People People pillar, we're

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<v Speaker 1>really thinking about by now, from now to impacting sixty

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<v Speaker 1>five billion healthcare interactions. And so that's you know, through

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<v Speaker 1>our CDs pharmacy locations, are minute clinic locations, through our

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<v Speaker 1>Ethna plans, through our care mark plans, and really making

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<v Speaker 1>sure that healthcare is accessible and changing the way we

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<v Speaker 1>think about healthcare. So it's on your corner, but it's

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<v Speaker 1>also in the palm of your hand. And if you

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<v Speaker 1>think about our commitments to community, we really want to

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<v Speaker 1>fill the gaps of our commercial business. So ensuring that

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<v Speaker 1>underserved and at risk populations have that same access to healthcare,

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<v Speaker 1>advancing health equity and reducing disparities is really top of

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<v Speaker 1>mind for us. So we're committing one point five billion

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<v Speaker 1>dollars over the next ten years to ensure that we

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<v Speaker 1>can reduce those disparities that we're seeing. How do you

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<v Speaker 1>you know, because I always find right that we've had

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<v Speaker 1>so many conversations Tim and I and our whole Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>News team over the last couple of years because of COVID.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm sure you have had it as well as uh,

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<v Speaker 1>George Floyd in terms of inclusivity. Um, but how what

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<v Speaker 1>are the specific moves that really move the needle in

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<v Speaker 1>terms of making sure that healthcare and your services get

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<v Speaker 1>out to parts of our population that have been really

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<v Speaker 1>left behind. I think two things are critical. I think

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<v Speaker 1>it's important to recognize that even though there are people

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<v Speaker 1>who may be under uninsured, there's also going to be

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<v Speaker 1>people who have hesitancy in terms of the health care system.

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<v Speaker 1>So we work really closely with community partners at the

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<v Speaker 1>really local level, and so you know, we're not going

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<v Speaker 1>to assume that everybody can get to a CBS to

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<v Speaker 1>get vaccinated. We've put up pop up clinics and free

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<v Speaker 1>clinics and community health centers and y m c a

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<v Speaker 1>s around the country specifically referring to COVID. We also

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<v Speaker 1>launched earlier this year an initiative called health Zones, and

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<v Speaker 1>health Zones is really focused on addressing the key social

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<v Speaker 1>determinants of health. So in addition to ensuring that people

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<v Speaker 1>have actual access to healthcare, we want to make sure

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<v Speaker 1>that they have transportation that gets them to those doctors appointments.

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<v Speaker 1>We want to make sure that they have education that

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<v Speaker 1>advances their health literacy and helps them to, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>better understand how to achieve their best health. Affordable housing

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<v Speaker 1>because as you can imagine, if you don't have housing,

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<v Speaker 1>it's extremely difficult to care about your your and your

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<v Speaker 1>family's health. And so we're really looking at housing, education,

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<v Speaker 1>access to food UM, transportation UM, and so our health

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<v Speaker 1>zones are really focused at the zip code level, so

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<v Speaker 1>that we're not trying to boil the ocean. We're really

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<v Speaker 1>trying to be really local and helping people find these services. Joan,

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<v Speaker 1>I don't mean to be cynical here, but this is

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<v Speaker 1>a publicly traded company. You're responsible to shareholders. You think

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<v Speaker 1>about top line in the bottom line, and the company

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<v Speaker 1>c suite certainly does too. And I'm wondering how you

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<v Speaker 1>can draw some sort of line from the initiatives that

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<v Speaker 1>you take on an E. S G basis to the

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<v Speaker 1>health of the business and helping the business grow I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>I think if you think about it from a healthcare standpoint,

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<v Speaker 1>reducing overall healthcare costs in the in the communities that

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<v Speaker 1>we serve, reducing emergency room visits, that helps everybody, That

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<v Speaker 1>helps our business, and that helps UM, you know obviously

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<v Speaker 1>the communities that we serve. And if you think about it,

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<v Speaker 1>from our commitments to the environment and specifically our goals

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<v Speaker 1>to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and eliminate our reliance on

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<v Speaker 1>greenhouse gas emissions by the year, there is real risk

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<v Speaker 1>related to climate um and weather related events that impact

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<v Speaker 1>our business, you know, hurricanes, flood fires, those impact our

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<v Speaker 1>business and cost us money. So the investments that we're

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<v Speaker 1>making in those places are helping us UM, and I

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<v Speaker 1>think our shareholders are asking us to be mindful of

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<v Speaker 1>these things more and more. Well, and it's interesting too,

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<v Speaker 1>and I think about you know, one of the things

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<v Speaker 1>that we've been kind of obsessing over, and maybe rightfully so,

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<v Speaker 1>is you know, the SEC putting out rules that would

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<v Speaker 1>require publicly traded companies, you know, to talk about climate

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<v Speaker 1>related risks and metrics, you know, And so we are

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<v Speaker 1>increasingly seeing regulators you know, step up to the plate

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<v Speaker 1>and want to know more on this, how how does

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<v Speaker 1>that impact what you are doing? And basically and basically

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<v Speaker 1>it speaks to write transparency and investors increasingly, you are

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<v Speaker 1>committing so much money, they really want to know if

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<v Speaker 1>I'm making any s G investment, Am I really getting

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<v Speaker 1>what I'm investing in? Yeah? And we're fortunate because we've been,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, reporting our data, especially around climate for such

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<v Speaker 1>a long time. But when you think about it, this

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't just impact our company, It in impacts our broad

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<v Speaker 1>supply chain also. And if you and if you think

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<v Speaker 1>about what I was just talking about in terms of

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<v Speaker 1>climate related events, there is substantive risk or can be

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<v Speaker 1>substantive risk to your business. And so the SEC is saying,

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<v Speaker 1>we really want you to think about that risk, and

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<v Speaker 1>we want you to audit that risk the way you

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<v Speaker 1>would either you know, the way you would audit other

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<v Speaker 1>financial risks to your business. And so you know, just

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<v Speaker 1>as you know at home, we want to wash our

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<v Speaker 1>clothes in cold water, and we want to turn our

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<v Speaker 1>lights off when we leave a room. At our size

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<v Speaker 1>and scale, we're thinking about the things that impact us

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<v Speaker 1>and that can help us save money but also can

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<v Speaker 1>help us protect the planet in the long term. So

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<v Speaker 1>when it comes to you say ten years, is it

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<v Speaker 1>possibly you will do it all quicker because you know,

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<v Speaker 1>when it comes to so many E. S. G metrics,

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<v Speaker 1>I think about what you talk about in terms of housing.

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<v Speaker 1>The sooner we can do all of this, the better

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<v Speaker 1>it is for so many members of our society. Is

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<v Speaker 1>it likely that it's going to take ten years or

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<v Speaker 1>can you do it quicker? So I think that we

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<v Speaker 1>have Like I said earlier, it's really important to have

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<v Speaker 1>near term goals and then also longer term goals. So

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<v Speaker 1>if I think about our commitments in the energy space, yes,

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<v Speaker 1>we want to you know, be we want to be complete.

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<v Speaker 1>We have zero greenhouse gas emissions or net zero greenhouse

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<v Speaker 1>gas emissions by the year twenty fifty. But that means

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<v Speaker 1>we need to stop relying on carbon emissions by the

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<v Speaker 1>year twenty and we need to dramatically invest in renewable

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<v Speaker 1>energies between now and and So I think that there's

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<v Speaker 1>going to be some quick wins. And if you think

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<v Speaker 1>about it from the social side of things, the s

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<v Speaker 1>side of things, we've invested somewhere, um, you know, in

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<v Speaker 1>the range of two and forty million dollars in philanthropic

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<v Speaker 1>investments in the year one to do just what you've referenced.

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<v Speaker 1>So if you think about food security, that our investments

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<v Speaker 1>in the area of food security provided a hundred and

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<v Speaker 1>fifty nine million meals for people who are food and secure,

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<v Speaker 1>and of the meals are supporting those people who are

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<v Speaker 1>racially diversed in food and secure, so that we're making

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<v Speaker 1>sure that help is getting to people today. Well, we

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<v Speaker 1>appreciate your time and just checking in with us and

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<v Speaker 1>and getting an update on all the efforts you guys

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<v Speaker 1>are doing. Joe and Dwyer, she's VP of Corporate Social

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<v Speaker 1>Responsibility and Sustainability at CVS Health. Via zoom from Rhode Island,