Walmart Healthcare Services Shutdown: Impacts on Employees and Patients

Walmart has announced the closure of all 51 of its health centers across five states, as well as its virtual health care service due to a lack of profitability. The company cited challenging reimbursement environment and escalating operating costs as reasons for the closure of its health care services.

The first Walmart Health center opened in Georgia in 2019, offering primary care, dental services, x-rays, and lab tests. Walmart later opened additional centers in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, and Texas. However, the closure of these centers will not affect Walmart’s 4,600 pharmacies and 3,000 vision centers.

Walmart also announced the shutdown of its telehealth service, Walmart Health Virtual Care, which launched in 2022. This decision comes at a time when virtual doctor’s visits have sharply declined since the peak of the pandemic. Recent data shows that telehealth visits dropped in 2023, with Medicare beneficiaries who used at least one telehealth service falling 73% to 2.8 million in the second quarter of 2023 from a peak of 10.2 million in the same period in 2020.

Employees of the closed health centers will have the option to transfer to other Walmart or Sam’s Club locations. This move by Walmart is likely to impact many employees and patients who relied on these services for their healthcare needs. It remains to be seen how this closure will affect access to healthcare for people living in these areas.