WOONSOCKET, R.I. — Helena Foulkes has been named to succeed Mark Cosby as president of CVS/pharmacy.
Foulkes, who will assume the post on January 1, has been CVS Caremark Corp.’s chief health care strategy and marketing ­officer.

Helena Foulkes has been named to succeed Mark Cosby as president of CVS/pharmacy.
Foulkes, who will assume the post on January 1, has been CVS Caremark Corp.’s chief health care strategy and marketing ­officer.

Cosby, who is stepping down December 31, has been the top executive at the company’s 7,600-store drug chain since October 2011. Before that he was president of Macy’s Inc.

Foulkes, 49, was promoted to her most recent post in 2011 after serving as executive vice president and chief marketing officer. As chief health care strategy and marketing officer she has been responsible for overall corporate strategy and enterprise marketing and communications. In that role she spearheaded the development of the Maintenance Choice and Pharmacy Advisor health care programs. Earlier she was instrumental in the creation of CVS’ ExtraCare loyalty program, which has about 70 million active cardholders. She joined the company in 1992.

"Helena is an open-minded and forward-thinking strategist, who has developed a reputation for successfully building product and business model innovations that drive growth, and for bringing together thought leaders both inside and outside the company," stated CVS Caremark president and chief executive Larry Merlo.

"As health care continues to evolve and we drive further differentiation through our integrated pharmacy model, we need a leader who truly understands the health care consumer and the opportunities we can deploy to attract and retain customers and generate strong, longer-term growth," he added.

Foulkes commented, "I am honored to lead our talented retail team. CVS Caremark has the unique ability to build consumer-centric health care solutions that improve access, control costs and lead to better health outcomes."

While taking leadership of the company’s retail business, ­Foulkes will retain her responsibility for CVS Caremark’s enterprise digital, brand and communications functions as she moves to the new role.

"I look forward to working closely with our enterprise leadership team to continue to introduce innovations that meet the changing needs of clients, patients and payors while driving growth for CVS Caremark," she remarked.