Walk-In Clinic

Once, not long ago, it looked like the market for retail clinics was boundless.  Wal-Mart seems perched to swoop down on the endless steam of people with sore throats, cuts and bruises, and other everyday maladies.  Now, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, that trend has slowed and even contracted-which seems counter-factual to other news about people losing healthcare during a national recession.  Wal-Mart has closed 44 outlets. , as have other providers acting independently from hospitals.  Industry analysts think this is a short term response to supply exceeding demand, but that view doesn’t seem to account for macro economic factors.    MORE