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BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart is closing its health centers and virtual care service, saying the the company doesn’t see a viable business model in primary care.
“Back in 2019, we launched Walmart Health centers. During our five-year journey, we made meaningful impacts with patients while continuing to learn, pivot and evolve. While our mission to help people save money and live better remains, today we are sharing the difficult decision to close Walmart Health and Walmart Health Virtual Care. Through our experience managing Walmart Health centers and Walmart Health Virtual Care, we determined there is not a sustainable business model for us to continue,” a company blog said.
“The decision to close all 51 health centers across five states and shut down the virtual care offering was not easy. We understand this change affects lives — the patients who receive care, the associates and providers who deliver care and the communities who supported us along the way. This is a difficult decision, and like others, the challenging reimbursement environment and escalating operating costs create a lack of profitability that make the care business unsustainable for us at this time,” the blog added.
“Our priority will be ensuring the people and communities who are impacted are treated with the utmost respect, compassion and support throughout the transition,” it said. “We do not yet have a specific date for when each center will close but will share as soon as decisions are made.
“While we will no longer operate health centers, we will take what we learned as we provide trusted health and wellness services across the country through our nearly 4,600 pharmacies and more than 3,000 vision centers. For 40 years, we have provided these high quality, accessible and affordable points of care that are integral to their respective communities.”
Walmart is now focused on continuity of care for patients and providing impacted associates with respect and assistance as it begins shuttering the health care centers, the blog said.
All associates are eligible to transfer to any other Walmart or Sam’s Club location.
- All will be paid for 90 days, unless they transfer to another location during that time or leave the company.
- After 90 days, if they do not transfer or leave, they will receive severance benefits.
- Providers will continue to serve existing patients while clinics are open. Through their respective employers, these providers will be paid for 90 days, after which eligible providers will receive transition payments.
“We are deeply grateful to these associates and providers for their caring service to patients in our communities and to the patients who trusted us with their care,” the blog said.
