Walmart’s New Goal: ‘To Be The Number One Healthcare Provider In The Industry’


On Tuesday, October 7, Walmart announced that they were cutting health benefits for 30,000 part-time employees who work less than 30 hours per week.?Walmart senior VP for global benefits Sally Welborn said “We don’t make these decisions lightly.”

“Like every company, Walmart continues to face rising health care costs,” Welborn said. “This year, the expenses were significant and led us to make some tough decisions as we begin our annual enrollment.”

Indeed.

Whoever does make these decisions at Walmart, however, seems to lack the irony gene. Some other Walmart news was announced this week but it didn’t get the same attention. On Monday, October 6 (the day before the other announcement if you’re not keeping up), Walmart announced that they’re going into the health insurance business. Wow! What a coincidence, right?

I guess they thought that making the announcement about slashing employee benefits should come after the announcement that they’re going to be selling insurance.

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From HuffPo:

The world’s largest retailer plans to work with DirectHealth.com, an online health insurance comparison site and agency, to allow shoppers to compare coverage options and enroll in Medicare plans or the public exchange plans created under the Affordable Care Act.

The program will target shoppers who are “confused” by the healthcare enrollment process. Yeah, keeping in character there, Walmart. Targeting the vulnerable and confused. Like your EMPLOYEES, for example. And this is epic:

“They include those whose employers scaled back their coverage to those who don’t have any insurance.”

Like your EMPLOYEES, Walmart? I know, I already said that.

They’ll make it easy for you. You can enroll in ‘Healthcare Begins Here” online, by phone, or at 2,700 Walmart stores. Enrollment begins October 10th. Yes, THIS Friday. The same week they made both of these announcements. Hey, just in time for Walmart’s soon-to-be-uninsured part-time employees to sign up.

Here is an interesting point. What’s up with this?

Wal-Mart won’t receive commissions on health coverage sales and hopes to benefit partly by luring customers into stores. DirectHealth is absorbing most of the costs to operate the program, Labeed Diab, senior vice president and president of Wal-Mart’s health and wellness division, told The Associated Press.

Forbes suggests that the partnership with DirectHealth is to Walmart’s benefit.

And partnering with DirectHealth.com for two months offers another benefit, Daugherty noted. ?It also helps Walmart study how consumers shop for health plans ? useful if they [end up] rolling out their own health plan,? she concluded.

Come on, now. Walmart does nothing for free. Is it all a part of a big plan that involved its own healthcare expansions? From?Forbes:

As part of Wal-Mart’s expansion into health care, it is testing 11 health care clinics run by Wal-Mart itself that offer primary care such as health screenings and management of chronic conditions like diabetes. That’s different from its 100 leased health care clinics in its stores that focus on basic services like flu shots.


In the past, they’ve denied that they plan to launch “full primary care services in five to seven years,” a rumor that was leaked by a Walmart official in 2013. But as of Monday, they’re saying this:

?Our goal is to be the number one health-care provider in the industry,? Walmart senior VP and president of Health & Wellness Labeeb Diab told the Washington Post’s Sarah Halzack. ?And the more we broaden our assortment, the more we broaden our offering, the more we educate the customer Walmart is a great place to create a one-stop shop.?

Likely their thinking is that if folks will buy their health insurance at Walmart, why not go to the doctor there, too.

How will this play out? What relation do both of these announcements (in the same week) have to each other? Are they going to suggest that their employees buy the health insurance that they’re offering for sale? Let me know what you think in the comments and on our Facebook page.

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Tiffany Willis is a fifth-generation Texan and the founder and editor-in-chief of Liberal America. An unapologetic member of the Christian Left, she has spent most of her career actively working with ?the least of these? and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. She’s passionate about their struggles. To stay on top of topics she discusses,?like her?Facebook page,?follow her on Twitter, or?connect with her via LinkedIn. She also has?a?grossly neglected personal blog?and a?literary quotes blog that is a labor of love. Find her somewhere and join the discussion.

I had a successful career actively working with at-risk youth, people struggling with poverty and unemployment, and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. In 2011, I made the decision to pursue my dreams and become a full-time writer. Connect with me on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.