Walmart and Sam’s Club Offer 10 Vital Immunizations Nationwide

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Walmart and Sam’s Club (a division of Wal-Mart Stores) recently announced the launch of expanded immunization services across the United States, signaling the company’s expansion into healthcare services [1, 2]. In partnership with Mollen Immunization Clinics, ten of the CDC-recommended immunizations will be offered in more than 2,700 Walmart stores and 554 Sam’s Club pharmacy locations.

By using Mollen Immunization Clinics’ nurse network, the company is able to offer immunizations to anyone three years and older based on CDC and FDA guidelines. Flu shots are available for $25 USD. Based on the World Health Organization’s recommendations, this year’s flu shot will protect against the H1N1, H3N2 and influenza B virus strains [3].

Walmart and Sam’s Club are the first national retailers to use registered nurses to administer in-store vaccinations across all store locations. Walmart is also partnering with Mollen to provide free blood pressure screenings at all immunization events in Walmart stores on September 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th.

Specific vaccine offerings include:

Flu (influenza) -– offered at all locations with a pharmacy
Pneumonia (pneumococcal) –- offered at all locations with a pharmacy
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Chickenpox (varicella)
HPV (human papilloma virus)
MMR (measles, mumps, rubella)
Meningitis (meningococcal)
Shingles (herpes zoster)
Tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough (pertussis) (Tdap)

Vaccinations are a fundamental part of public health, and both Walmart and Sam’s Club are helping communities nationwide to stay healthy.

John Agwunobi, M.D., president of Walmart U.S. Health and Wellness, cited how easy and inexpensive it is for customers to receive vaccinations [1]:

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, many adults are not up-to-date with recommended life-saving immunizations. Vaccinations may not be top-of-mind while the weather is still warm, but they are a critical part of public health, especially in light of recent outbreaks of whooping cough and shingles. We are making it easy and affordable for our customers to receive their vaccinations — while on their normal shopping trips they can simply stop by immunization events, which will accept thousands of insurance plans and offer low price options for our cash paying customers.

Jill Turner-Mitchael, senior vice president of Sam’s Club Health and Wellness, said [2]:

Under-vaccinated communities can face a greater risk of local outbreaks of disease, and the CDC’s recommended vaccine schedule for adults is a great reference to ensure that our communities stay healthy. By offering the CDC’s recommended vaccines this year, Sam’s Club pharmacies continue to help our communities live healthy at a remarkable value.

The new services come in response to a recent study funded by Sam’s Club [2]. A survey of a nationally representative sample of 1,023 U.S. adults age 18 and older revealed that more than two thirds of Americans are unaware of the availability of CDC-recommended vaccines other than the flu shot. While a majority has received a flu shot (62%) or Tdap (59%), the vast majority of Americans do not report receiving any of the other CDC-recommended vaccines in their lifetimes.

Immunization events will be available at both Walmart and Sam’s Club from now until November 15th.