NEW YORK — Former CVS Caremark Corp. chairman Mac Crawford and Wilbur Ross Jr. of WL Ross & Co. are forming a joint venture to invest in and restructure health care companies.
The partnership could spend more than $1 billion to "build a major position in health care," Ross said.
The venture pairs turnaround specialist Crawford with a private equity firm that has bought stakes in distressed sectors including airlines, steel and auto parts.
Before its acquisition by CVS, Crawford was chairman, president and CEO of Caremark. He started with the company, then called Med Partners, in 1998 when it managed physician practices. Under Crawford it switched its focus to pharmacy benefits management.
Renamed Caremark, it became the second largest PBM in the country in 2004 by buying AdvancePCS. CVS acquired Caremark in March 2007 for $26.5 billion.
