If the reports are true, you soon will be able to get health services from your local Wal-Mart.
That’s right, according to a report from National Public Radio a 14-page document sent to various healthcare vendors outlines how Wal-Mart "intends to build a national, integrated, low-cost primary care healthcare platform."
“Great Value” for your healthcare costs?
The retail giant based in Arkansas is looking to partner with outside healthcare companies in order to treat a range of serious medical conditions. Some key services that are outlined and could be available in the 140 store clinics:
- HIV management
- Obesity Monitoring
- Arthritis monitoring
- Depression care
- Pregnancy/ STD testing
- Drug screening
- Physical exams and even
- Stress and Sleep help
All this comes at a time where the Affordable Care Act will overhaul many insurance policies and expand coverage to millions of Americans.
“It seems that Wal-Mart could be well positioned to care for a dramatic increase in the number of paying patients out there," said Larry Levitt, head of the non-profit Kaiser Family Foundation's Initiative on Health Reform and Private Insurance.
A real one stop shop place to go?
Take a stroll at your neighborhood Wal-Mart Supercenter – and you’ll find a section for groceries, pet food, cosmetics, fast-food, a kids arcade, a wireless cell phone center, a Pharmacy and eye visions services. A leap to primary care services doesn’t seem out of reach for the retail giant.
It’s important to note that Wal-Mart isn’t the only major retailer to operate in-store clinics – major chains such as Walgreens, CVS, and Target offer stiff competition.
Dr. John Agwunobi, president of Wal-Mart U.S. Health & Wellness states that “The statement of intent is overwritten and incorrect… we are not building a national… healthcare platform."
This could simply mean that Wal-Mart is making plans to offer more in-store clinics, with no immediate changes to the national chain in the coming months.
The confidential 14-page document does bring the question, “What if Wal-Mart does become a primary care service provider?”
Paul Ginsburg, president of the Center for Studying Health System Change say it has the potential to “create an entirely new model” for delivering healthcare. If Wal-Mart offer more affordable services in a more convenient location, customers may make more visits to the store instead of traditional health care clinics. Even in a more extreme situation, patients could opt of less services in their health insurance coverage if they could afford the prices the clinics would set in their local store.
It would be interesting, and if anything convenient, to go to a Wal-Mart and see a clinic as you pass the entrance. Will they stand by there "always low prices?"
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