The Best Health Care In The World?
Because they can’t tolerate not getting money from every possible human need, Wal-Mart to open in-store medical clinics
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will open its first in-store medical clinics under its own brand name after leasing space in dozens of stores to outside companies that operate the quick-service health stops.
The world’s largest retailer said Thursday it will open “The Clinic at Wal-Mart” as a joint venture with local hospital systems in Atlanta, Dallas and Little Rock, Ark., starting in April.
I wonder if they’ll run specials on things like broken bones, you know, 20% off after the end of football season. Medical care as a commodity – this is what we’ve come to. How long before there’s a self-service aisle, or you need a barcode tattoo for billing? How many insurance companies are going to require you use them?
6 comments
Sounds like they’re doing the “doc in a box” deal — you know, those “urgent care” centers that seem to be popping up on every other street corner in urban areas? Typically staffed by some youngster just out of med school with wide shocked eyes who looks like he’s falling over from exhaustion every minute because he works 12 hours a day 7 days a week for barely more than minimum wage?
Do note that these kinds of outfits rarely accept health insurance. They’ve figured out that, by the time they add up the staff needed to bill for insurance, and fight the insurance companies, they don’t have any profit left, so they just bill people cash money at the door prior to service, then slap a bandaid on the ouchie, pop a prescrip in your hand, and tell ya to come back in a couple weeks if you aren’t feeling better. Oh, they never handle anything that requires special equipment or anything either, no x-rays for broken bones, none of that, they tell you to go to the emergency room if it’s anything that a bandaid and a prescription can’t solve. And this is all the health care that most uninsured have, and they’re happy to have it because at least they get *some* access to health care out of it…
My thought: The biggest user of Wal-Mart’s clinics will be, well, Wal-Mart employees. It’s all they can afford, after all :-(.
– Badtux the Health Care Penguin
… and they’re happy to have it because at least they get *some* access to health care out of it…
damn straight we are. but yeah, if i ever again manage to get insurance and the insurance company requires, or even suggests, that i go to wal-mart for my doctoring, i’m going to be pissed.
otoh, the wal-mart of old, sam walton’s wal-mart, would probably have dome a pretty good job of running reasonably-priced doc-in-the-boxes.
I can hardly wait. We’re open on gurney 3, 15 conditions or fewer….
Down here the two immediate care centers are tied to the hospital and the major medical group, and they certainly aren’t cheap or convenient, Badtux. If they open one locally, I’d like to see what their pricing is like, because $75 for an antibiotic ‘script is definitely not cheap, even if Publix supermarket fills it for free.
You can’t get a doctor these days without a referral, so where in hell do you get in line for the initial referral?
Yeah, SC, but there will always be some clown hit by a truck who will get in line in front of you, and who will want to write a check after his arm is in the cast.
Until now, I’ve been a ZERO prescription a day lady and would have preferred to keep it that way. Now I am saddled with seven, three of which can be bought for $4 per month at Wal Mart*.
That’s a very welcomed development for me, but a clinic – not so sure about that. They will miss too much, as will their customers.
* Yes, I know I can get the same deal elsewhere, but Wal Mart is closer by far. Sigh….
It’s better than nothing, which is the choice too many people have these days, and it can’t be much worst than an overcrowded emergency room which costs a whole lot more.
As much as I dislike Wal-Mart, they are one of the few organs that have the money to do this, but it is essentially the same as socialized medicine, except the medical people are employees of a corporation instead of the government.