On March 23, 2007, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'BBB+' corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on integrated pharmacy service provider CVS/Caremark Corp. At the same, we affirmed the 'A-2' short-term rating on the Woonsocket, R.I.-based company. The corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings were removed from CreditWatch, where they were placed on March 8, 2007, with negative implications. The outlook is stable. The action follows the announcement that CVS Corp. and Caremark Rx Inc. have formally closed their merger of equals. Standard&Poor's affirmation of the ratings reflects the diversified cash flow stream of the combined companies, the benefits of vertical integration, the potential for an improvement in its competitive position via differentiation of
