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BATON ROUGE, La. — CVS Health has opened a new workforce development and community resource center designed to help the Baton Rouge community overcome employment barriers and increase access to local health care services.
Located at 5353 Essen Lane, the facility includes a Workforce Innovation & Talent Center (WITC), which offers comprehensive career skills training and job placement that includes a CVS Pharmacy mock store, simulated pharmacy environment and authentic, hands-on externships at local CVS Pharmacy locations. It also includes a new Community Resource Center (CRC) supported by Aetna Better Health of Louisiana, a CVS Health company. The CRC provides the public, Aetna Medicaid members and workforce program participants onsite health needs assessments and education, help with navigating their health benefits, access to computers and state-of-the-art teleconferencing, CPR and first aid training and connections to a local network of care providers.
Staffed with a dedicated team of career skills trainers and care navigators from CVS Health, Aetna and workforce community organizations, the combination WITC/CRC marks the first time the company has co-located these critical community resources, bridging the gap between career training and health services that help overcome impediments to stable employment.
“As a leading health solutions company, we know that there is a strong connection between sustainable employment and health and wellness,” said Jess Hall, CEO of Aetna Better Health of Louisiana, a CVS Health company. “With the combined resources of CVS Health and Aetna and our network of community partners, we are uniquely positioned to help the people of Baton Rouge access the career skills training and the health and wellness services they need to overcome barriers to employment, stay healthy and motivated and ultimately succeed in their careers.”
According to a Louisiana Department of Health report, increased access to employment and career training programs are among the efforts that are significant in improving health outcomes.
“I firmly believe in the power of public-private partnerships to drive positive change and create opportunities for our community. The collaboration between Big Buddy Baton Rouge and CVS Health through the Mayor’s Youth Workforce Experience (MYWE) exemplifies this commitment, as it provides invaluable workforce development environments and hands-on job training to our future workforce,” said Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome. “By working together, we can ensure that our residents have the skills and resources they need to thrive in today’s competitive job market. This partnership not only benefits the individuals involved but also strengthens our local economy and fosters a brighter future for Baton Rouge.”
This summer will mark three years that CVS Pharmacy locations throughout Baton Rouge will serve as host sites for summer externs enrolled in the MYWE program. In collaboration with Big Buddy to source MYWE talent, CVS Health has made it possible for more than 50 Baton Rouge high school students to receive quality afterschool and summer workforce experiences.
“Working at CVS has really helped to strengthen my communication skills, because prior to my externship I was shy, but I’ve since realized I’m an extrovert,” said 16-year-old A’amya Johnson, a MYWE scholar who now works part-time as a CVS Pharmacy retail associate following the successful completion of a 2023 summer externship. “I love everything about my job especially talking to the customers. This opportunity has helped me decide that I want to pursue a health care career.”
At the intersection of health care, workforce and education, CVS Health’s workforce programming has created pathways to employment in more than 1,150 communities across the U.S. over the past decades. In 2023, in collaboration with federal, state and local agencies, nonprofit, faith-based and career development organizations, the company streamlined access to meaningful employment for more than 1,400 individuals.
