In a recent announcement, Walmart has revealed that it will be closing all 51 of its health centers that were opened in five states since 2019. Additionally, the retail giant has decided to shut down its virtual care program after acquiring telehealth provider MeMD in 2021. Despite initial optimism about making healthcare more accessible and affordable through retail outlets, Walmart found that the reality was much more complex. The company acknowledged that reimbursement environment and operating costs were escalating, leading to a lack of profitability in the healthcare business. As a result, Walmart deemed these ventures unsustainable at this time.
Last year, Walmart had announced plans to double the number of health clinics it operated and expand into two new states by 2024. However, the recent decision to close all health centers represents a significant shift from those plans. Although specific dates for the closures were not provided, Walmart assured that existing patients would continue to receive care until the centers shut down. The closure of the health centers will not impact Walmart’s pharmacies or Vision Centers, which will continue to operate as usual.
Retail giants like Walmart, BestBuy, and Amazon have all attempted to tap into the vast $3.6 trillion Americans spend on healthcare each year but have faced challenges. While they may have initially hoped to make healthcare more convenient and affordable through their retail outlets, they quickly realized that it was much more complicated than they anticipated. With rising reimbursement environments and operating costs, these companies found themselves struggling to make a profit from their healthcare ventures and ultimately decided to shut them down entirely.
