In recent weeks, retail giant Walmart has expanded its in-house healthcare options for its massive workforce and made moves to create a lasting brick-and-mortar healthcare presence.
On Nov. 1, Walmart signed its first care coordination partnership with Orlando (Fla.) Health. The partnership will focus on "effective transitions of care" and "value-based outcomes."
The move marks more direct competition with other retail healthcare providers, such as One Medical and CVS Health that have already been partnering with health systems. Additionally, Walmart has been linked to the potential purchase of ChenMed, a chain of primary care clinics.
If Walmart goes through with the "several billion dollar" deal, it would own more than 100 health centers in 15 states, dramatically increasing its in-person provider offerings.
Walmart Health Chief Medical Informatics Officer Claude Pirtle, MD, told Becker's that the company is taking an agile "startup" mentality to its healthcare offerings.
Beyond growing access to care for its customers, Walmart, the largest private employer in the U.S., is looking to cut down on its employee healthcare costs. In 2022, Walmart spent over $6 billion on claims, insurance premiums and administrative costs. To lower these expenditures, Walmart partnered with Included Health to provide virtual care to its employees.
"Over the past three and a half years, Walmart has tested and validated the role of virtual care beyond simple sick needs," Included Health CEO Owen Tripp. "Against national primary care shortages, rural health care deserts, and persistent price growth, Walmart has continued to move health care forward."