Walgreens and VillageMD plan to open 600 co-located primary care clinics within five years.Photo Credit: Walgreens
As competitors ramp up their retail health plans, Walgreens will open 29 primary care clinics in Texas this year. The company shared on Monday that it plans to open clinics through partnerships with VillageMD in Houston, El Paso and Austin.
This is part of a broader partnership, including Plan to invest USD 1 billion in VillageMD In the next five years, it plans to open at least 600 on-site clinics. They said that so far, these companies are expected to achieve this goal.
Walgreens has tested on-site clinics in the past. But with its current partnership, it is doubling down on implementing this strategy. By the end of the five years, it plans to own 30% of VillageMD.
A key feature of the partnership is that doctors and pharmacists can jointly manage patient care. For example, for people who handle multiple prescriptions at the same time, they may get more support in managing these drugs and being able to dispense them all at once.
“By providing rural medical primary care services and Walgreens pharmacy services through an integrated care model, we are promoting regular and direct communication with patients to help provide improved health outcomes and affordable care,” Co-founder and CEO Clay Dr. Fields said to VillageMD’s medical officer in the press release. “We are excited to expand these services in Texas so that residents can manage their chronic diseases and focus on being healthy and active members of the community.”
VillageMD, headquartered in Chicago, was established in 2013. The company currently operates more than 200 clinics in 13 markets mainly through partnerships.
At the same time, other retailers are developing their primary care plans. CVS Health is continuing its plan to transform more than 1,000 of its stores into “HealthHUB” and provide more space for medical services—despite those The plan was slowed down by the pandemic.
At the same time, Amazon is Sell telemedicine services to other companies It is piloted with employees, Walmart Recently acquired telemedicine company MeMD After opening a smaller number of face-to-face clinics.
