For Medicare patients considering a switch to Oak Street Health, the model sounds compelling: longer appointments, a dedicated care team, proactive outreach, and a clinic designed from the ground up for older adults. But is it actually better than what you already have?
The honest answer is: it depends on your situation. Here is what the evidence and real-world experience suggest.
Where Oak Street Health tends to deliver well
The strongest case for Oak Street Health is for Medicare patients who feel their current primary care is too rushed, too hard to reach, or poorly coordinated.
Standard primary care visits in the US often average 15 minutes or fewer. That can be challenging when a patient has multiple chronic conditions, takes several medications, and needs a doctor who understands the full picture. Oak Street's model allocates more time per patient and structures the care team to stay engaged between visits.
Patients managing conditions like diabetes, heart disease, COPD, or hypertension — all common in the Medicare population — often benefit from this level of attention. Research on value-based primary care models consistently shows lower hospitalization rates and better chronic disease outcomes when patients receive more proactive management.
Oak Street also tends to score well on care coordination. Having a dedicated care manager who can help with specialist referrals, medication questions, and follow-up calls can make a meaningful difference in the daily experience of managing health in retirement.
Where Oak Street Health has limitations
Oak Street Health is not available everywhere. The network is concentrated in specific urban and suburban markets. Rural patients or those in smaller cities may have no Oak Street location within a reasonable distance.
Not all insurance plans are accepted. Most Oak Street clinics accept Original Medicare and many Medicare Advantage plans, but not all MA plans in every market. Before switching, you need to confirm that your specific plan is in-network at your specific location.
Switching primary care providers always carries some disruption. Your current doctor knows your history, your preferences, and the nuances of your care. That accumulated context has real value. The Oak Street model is strong, but it starts from scratch with your records and takes time to build a relationship.
Some patients also report that the care model works best for people who actively engage with it — who respond to outreach calls, use care coordination services, and keep regular appointments. If you prefer minimal contact with your health care system, the proactive check-ins can feel like more interaction than you want.
The CVS ownership question
Some patients wonder whether being owned by CVS Health affects the quality of care at Oak Street. The practical answer is that individual clinic experiences vary, and the care team relationship is determined largely by the specific providers and staff at each location.
What CVS ownership does bring is scale — access to pharmacy integration, potential coordination with Aetna insurance products, and resources for technology investment. Whether that translates to meaningfully better care in your case depends on the specific market and your own insurance situation.
The clinic closures in 2025 created uncertainty for some patients, and that is worth acknowledging. But the remaining network appears to be stable and, according to CVS leadership, is the focus of continued investment going into 2026.
How to evaluate Oak Street Health for yourself
The clearest way to assess fit is to schedule an initial visit. Oak Street typically offers introductory appointments for new patients, and a single visit will give you a much stronger sense of the care team, the office environment, and the approach than reading any amount of online information.
Before that visit, pull together your current medication list, a summary of your chronic conditions, and a list of specialists you currently see. Bring that to the appointment and discuss how Oak Street would coordinate with those providers. Ask specifically how the care team would handle after-hours calls, urgent issues, and specialist referrals.
Also ask which Medicare Advantage plans they are in-network with — and if you are on Original Medicare, confirm that they participate in traditional Medicare before assuming coverage.
The bottom line
Oak Street Health is genuinely well-suited for a large share of the Medicare population, particularly those managing chronic conditions who want a care team that stays engaged. It is not the right fit for everyone, and availability is limited by geography and insurance.
The most important thing is to make an active, informed decision rather than staying with a care arrangement out of inertia. Whether you choose Oak Street or another provider, investing the time to find primary care that works well for you is one of the highest-value health decisions you can make as a Medicare beneficiary.