Walmart Abandons Healthcare Ventures: Lessons Learned from Retail Giant’s Unsuccessful Foray into Telemedicine and Clinics

In recent news, Walmart has announced the closure of all 51 health centers that it had 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. The decision to close these ventures was made because Walmart was not generating enough profit from them and deemed them unsustainable.

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. Despite initial optimism that making healthcare more convenient and affordable through these retail outlets would be profitable, Walmart found that the reality was much more complicated. The reimbursement environment and operating costs were escalating, leading to a lack of profitability in the healthcare business. This ultimately made it unsustainable for the company 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, with the recent decision to close all health centers, this represents a significant shift from those plans. While 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 these health centers will not impact Walmart’s pharmacies or Vision Centers, which will continue to operate as usual.