DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens Boots Alliance and VillageMD plan to open 29 new Village Medical at Walgreens practices in Houston, Austin and El Paso, Texas, this year, the companies said.

The openings are part of an overall goal of adding at least 600 Village Medical at Walgreens locations in more than 30 U.S. markets over the next four years, with hundreds more to follow. The companies announced a $1 billion accelerated investment effort in January 2021 to deliver high-quality health care to patients, with Village Medical primary care physicians and Walgreens pharmacy services through an integrated care delivery model.

“This strategic partnership between Walgreens and VillageMD demonstrates our continuing commitment to the care and well-being of our patients, and we’re excited to expand our primary care and pharmacy service offerings in Texas,” says Jamie Vortherms, vice president of health care services at Walgreens. “With the opening of these Village Medical at Walgreens locations, we’re providing convenient access to personalized, high-quality and coordinated care.”

By leveraging the physician and pharmacist under one roof, patients benefit from improved health outcomes and lowered cost of care. These benefits help patients take the right medication and the right doses at the right time, removing the barriers to accessing primary care and pharmacy by having it all in one place.

In Austin, El Paso and Houston, there are more than 825,000 patients within five miles of a new or planned Village Medical at Walgreens who are over 65 years old, which further underscores the need for quality, accessible health care.

“With Village Medical primary care services and Walgreens pharmacy services delivered through an integrated care model, we’re facilitating regular and direct communication with patients, helping deliver improved health outcomes and affordable care,” says Dr. Clive Fields, cofounder and chief medical officer of VillageMD. “We’re pleased to expand these offerings in Texas so residents can manage their chronic conditions and focus on being healthy, active members of their community.”

The companies have also expanded their coordinated care model to allow Village Medical patients to access the same type of pharmacy services — including between-visit refills, medication substitutions and comprehensive consultations — from selected Walgreens sites that do not have a collocated Village Medical. This program has launched at all collocations, and it is launching at nine non-collocations in the Houston and Phoenix areas.