Sam’s Club and its parent company Wal-Mart Stores has a strategy to continue to disrupt the health care arena. From the $4 generic prescription the retailer introduced a decade ago to the 18 health care clinics inside Walmart Stores and 486 hearing aid centers in Sam’s Clubs, there is still more the retail giant hopes to do. Jill Turner-Mitchael, senior vice president overseeing health and wellness for Sam’s Club, said Sam’s Club and Walmart have already become known for their health screenings and immunizations but that isn’t enough. Mitchael was the keynote speaker at the Northwest Arkansas Council’s Health Care Summit in Rogers on Wednesday (April 6). She said the health care clinics that Walmart opened in 2014 are proving to be a cost-effective way to provide acute and chronic medical care to the communities it serves. She said the $4 office visit for employees and $59 cost for the general public offer substantial savings over traditional clinic visits. The labs and diagnostic services are 25% cheaper than traditional plans, which is why the retailer plans to expand its health care clinic footprint over the next few years.
Sam’s Club business members report a 7% to 15% savings on their health care insurance costs when they utilize the retailer’s private health care exchange which was unveiled in 2014 in collaboration with Aetna. Mitchael said Aetna was the only plan available in year one, but now there are several new plan options curated specifically for Sam’s Club members. “We believe that consumers are going to want their health care delivered to them anywhere, anyway and any how they choose. Technology will help to facilitate this in the coming years. It’s already happening,” she said. At the consumer electronics trade show in Las Vegas there were dozens of companies touting technology designed to track and detect body functions and applications, Mitchael said. One was , a product that will perform typical eye exams online, and email a prescription all for the cost of $40. “This could be a big disruption in the cost of eye care treatment in the future,” she said. Mitchael said Sam’s Club is moving ahead with several new healthcare tests because 10,000 American’s turn 65 each day which will create more demand in the next few years on the health care industry.
One area Sam’s is working on is to become a destination for caregivers. She said there are 66 million caregivers in the U.S. and 73% of them are employed. The average age is 48 and they are mostly women. Sam’s Club has to be a one-stop destination where they can find information on everything from stress management to shopping for specific products that facilitate care such as lift chairs to getting automatic prescription refills to save time. Mitchael said the site is functional but is continually be upgraded to include more information specifically for caregivers. “We are also looking at adding dietitians to our clubs this year. We know it will drive loyalty to our company and will drive grocery sales. But we have no idea exactly how to quantify that. We will figure it out over the next few months,” Mitchael said. HEALTH CARE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE She said Sam’s Club is focusing on healthier living and dietitians are part of the plan. Mitchael said she believes Northwest Arkansas can become a health care center of excellence but it’s going to take lots of work to get there.
She said there are already pillars in place like the University of Arkansas, a wide network of health care providers, a growing economy, a growing population, large employers, and charitable foundations embracing the value of quality of life and healthy living in the region. But Mitchael said it takes more than that. She said legislators have to make Arkansas competitive with neighboring states in terms of tax incentives. She said the region needs a task force dedicated to health care sector growth which includes stakeholders from all sides. “The gaps must identified but then we have to be bold and run after them. Do something different if the region is to become a health care center for excellence,” she said. The health care professionals and industry stakeholders spent two hours at the summit in meetings to discuss specific ways the region might proceed to become a health care center for excellence. Two main threads ran through those discussions, one being the special task force, Mitchael mentioned.
Community health was the other idea emerging from the discussions – focusing on healthy living as opposed health care delivery. This would include personal accountability in the region to provide access to primary care, healthy food and affordable housing. The groups also want to see more information shared across networks statewide as well as streamlining resources where possible. In other words identity the gaps and eliminate duplicity where possible. Mike Malone, president of the , said the Council would take on the challenge and gather a task force of stakeholders dedicated to helping the region become a center of excellence for health care. “I am reminded of the first time the Council unveiled its 10-year economic growth plan in 2011. I was told then it was the end of the beginning which is where we are today,” Malone said. “Today’s discussions were an important first step toward this goal.”Is Costco’s Lifetime Return Policy a Scam? DoughRoller receives compensation from some companies issuing financial products, like credit cards and bank accounts, that appear on this site.
Unless a post is clearly marked "Sponsored", however, products mentioned in editorial articles and reviews are based on the author's subjective assessment of their value to readers, not compensation. Compensation may impact how and where products appear on non-editorial pages (e.g., comparison or "marketplace" pages). That said, our standard is that we will never accept advertising from a product which we wouldn't use ourselves. This article is about my experience with Costco’s purported lifetime return policy. But first let’s review. Last week Michael published an article about how he stole $45 from Costco. He felt terrible about what he had done and wanted readers’ views on the situation. Most people felt he did the wrong thing, myself included. But what was particularly surprising to me was the venom in a few of the comments. Here are two examples:I am unsubscribing from your blog because I will not seek financial advice from someone of questionable character. That’s what this is about.
Not whether or not Costco will miss the money. Not to whom you should donate the money to atone for your misdeed. Not how lucky you are for this “found” money. Knowing the truth, you intentionally deceived Costco in order to avoid paying for those goods. That was the point that you crossed the line. You can still make things right, but you are choosing not to do so because you are embarrassed. Your principles are compromised. . . . May the dishonesty you’ve demonstrated be returned upon you 1,000 times. As a senior manager it is very depressing to see your lack of anonymity towards the cashier and member service employee you embarrassed. I can not immagine how they must feel. The sad part is you knowingly walked out with unpaid merchandise and failed to make it right. To make matters worse we know who you are Every time you shop your card will be flagged (beware of possible theft). At no point will you be approached. Yet, we will be watching you from this point forward no matter which Costco you shop.
Thnak you for the heads up XXXXX So if a $45 error gets people this upset at Michael, then the story I’m about to tell will really upset them. Costco’s Lifetime Return Policy A little over two years ago we bought our son an electric piano from Costco. It cost about $1,300. Earlier this year he told me he wanted a different piano, and he asked if he could return the piano to Costco and buy a new one. When I explained that it had been nearly two years since we bought the piano from Costco, he told me they have a lifetime return policy. To be honest, I didn’t believe him. So I called Costco. Sure enough, with some exceptions Costco has a lifetime return guarantee. At least that’s what the Costco representative told me on the phone. to check out the return policy, and here’s what it says: Merchandise: We guarantee your satisfaction on every product we sell with a full refund. The following must be returned within 90 days of purchase for a refund: televisions, projectors, computers, cameras, camcorders, iPOD / MP3 players and cellular phones.
Sure enough, there is no time limit on returns except for a few electronics listed above. So the next day I called back to start the return process. The Costco representative pulled up my purchase, confirmed that it was eligible for return, and told me somebody would contact me in the next 7 to 10 days to schedule a pickup of the piano. Later that day we ordered his new electric piano from Amazon. And then I received the following e-mail: Costco is dedicated to offering the best products at the best prices to our members. We recognize that in rare instances there are defects in products that we sell, or a member may decide that they purchased the wrong item for their needs. Our return policy is the most lenient in the marketplace to accommodate our members in these instances. Several conditions are evaluated when considering a return of purchase; reason for return, membership history, return history, date of purchase and price of purchase. Recently, you contacted us to request a return for the item listed above.
We make every effort to accommodate the needs of our members, however based on your original purchase date and the reasons listed above, we will be unable to honor this request. I’ve left out the name of the Costco representative who signed the e-mail. The most interesting part of this e-mail is the following: “Several conditions are evaluated when considering a return of purchase; reason for return, membership history, return history, date of purchase and price of purchase.” Compare that sentence to Costco’s return policy and you’ll see a stark difference. I guess they tell you one thing when you are buying stuff from them and another thing when you are returning stuff to them. Quite annoyingly, no phone number was included in the e-mail so I have no way of calling the person who sent the message. So instead I call back the number used for returns. The Costco representative tells me that returns older than 2 years are not accepted. I pointed out that (1) that’s not what I was told when I first called to inquire about Costco’s return policy, (2) that’s not what I was told when the representative processed my return, (3) that’s not what Costco’s return policy says, and (4) the piano was purchased less than two years ago (by just a few days).