Karen S. Lynch, who serves as EVP at CVS Health and president at Aetna, will become CEO and president for CVS Health as of Feb. 1.

She will also join the board of directors in her new role, according to a press release. Current President and CEO Larry J. Merlo will retire after 10 years at the helm. Merlo began his career at CVS as a community pharmacist four decades ago. He will continue as a board director as well as strategic advisor until May, 2021.

"This leadership transition comes at the right time for CVS Health. This month marks the two-year anniversary as one company, with our foundation clearly established and significant positive momentum across the company," David W. Dorman, chair of the board of CVS Health Corp., said in the release. "As Larry has been transparent with us about his overall plans, we were able to put a thorough, multi-year process in place to consider and evaluate internal and external candidates. That process led to the selection of Karen Lynch. Larry's collaboration with Karen in the coming months will ensure an effective leadership transition."

"I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to succeed Larry and lead CVS Health on the next phase of our important journey to meet America's health care needs," Lynch said in the release. "Never before has our purpose been more critical than during these unprecedented times. Together with the CVS Health leadership team and all of our colleagues, I will work to build on the strong foundation Larry has put in place to continue to make health care more accessible and affordable, driving better health outcomes for our consumers and communities. I am highly confident about our company's future and look forward to further accelerating the value we bring to all of our stakeholders."

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