Walmart Health is opening five new Florida locations as the retailer continues to expand its “one-stop” vision for healthcare products.

walmart The company said Tuesday that it will open two clinics in Jacksonville in the coming months, two in Orlando and one in Tampa.The retail giant represents Growing number of non-traditional healthcare providers Seeking to provide a more convenient and affordable experience through a combination of virtual and in-person care.

“Florida’s population has grown significantly, and demand has outstripped supplier assets,” said Dr. David Carmouche, who Recently left Ochsner Health As president of its Physician Group, leads Walmart’s omnichannel care division. “We bring together our assets in nutrition, pharmacy and primary care to achieve our vision of being a great place to meet all of people’s healthcare needs.”

Florida is a growing home Medicare Advantage Market Many residents suffer from chronic medical conditions, Carmouche said.

Walmart’s The clinic provides chronic disease management, urgent care and mental health counseling, as well as dental, vision and hearing services.These locations also provide laboratory services, X-rays and diagnostics through a Joint venture Diagnose with Quest.

Patients pay a flat fee, regardless of insurance coverage, and can ask a community health worker about insurance benefits or a dietitian about food when shopping for groceries.

Here are five things to know about Walmart’s healthy expansion:

1. Its Florida clinic will be the first to implement Epic, an electronic health record. Instead of slowing the rollout of its clinics, Walmart Health is gradually expanding into different markets as it customizes products for local populations, executives said. “We have a range of assets that allow us to go to market in a unique way based on market needs,” Carmouche said, noting that Walmart’s acquisition of telehealth provider MeMD will allow it to provide primary, emergency and Behavioral Care. “Our services may evolve with the needs of the market, such as whether they prefer virtual or face-to-face encounters. Everything will be connected through a common EMR, so data will be available no matter how it gets into the system.”
2. Walmart Health is generating more revenue for the company.its health department report Its net sales in the U.S. last year were $42.84 billion, or nearly 11 percent of its total revenue. Its health business was its fastest-growing segment in the fourth quarter. Walmart Health’s annual net sales rose 11% from 2021, when it accounted for about 10% of the organization’s total U.S. sales.
3. Walmart is partnering with the Elton John AIDS Foundation to expand testing and with Chicago-based HabitNu, which provides disease prevention training to Walmart’s community health workers.
4. Nearly 4,000 Walmart stores are located in one or more underserved areas, as defined by the Health Resources and Services Administration. About half of Walmart Health’s patients are repeat customers. “In the traditional health care system, it is very difficult to make health care more affordable and equitable at scale,” Carmouche said, adding that Walmart has more flexibility in pursuing capitation and other alternative payment models . “We’re excited about the impact of our platform, which seems to resonate with the people we recruit. A lot of people are frustrated with the current state of healthcare and are looking for non-traditional players.”
5. Longtime traditional healthcare executives like Carmouche are joining the likes of Walmart and Amazon, which offer nationwide telehealth services and in-person care in select cities through Amazon Care’s employer health plan. Walmart is using their new hires to work with the health system. In Atlanta, Georgia, for example, Walmart offers HIV-AIDS testing and refers patients to neighboring health systems. “For the services we do, we want to be an omnichannel, accessible site, but we do want to make sure we’re working together so that people get the right care when they need it, and what they have in the community,” Dr. Say. Cheryl Pegus, executive vice president of health and wellness at Walmart.

Learn more about Walmart’s health strategy by watching Checkup in modern healthcare.