Wal-Mart – The Real American Goverment
Wal-Mart Stores is striding into the market for electronic health records, seeking to bring the technology into the mainstream for physicians in small offices, where most of America’s doctors practice medicine.
-New York Times (Original Article)
So yet again Wal-Mart has found a way to boister even more control of the United States outside of it’s retail playground. Wal-Mart Has decided to jump into the race of EHR (Electronic Health Records) systems. Having worked in this field for the past 2 years, this came as a great shock at first…..but then again it is “Wal-Mart!”
We all have our love for Wal-Mart’s conveniences of location, low prices, and myriad of provided services (Pharmacy, Bakery, Restaurants, Optometrists, Banks, Hair Salons, Photography, etc.). I have to admit, I’m an avid Wal-Mart shopper solely for convenience of location (about .3 miles from my Apartment). I will also admit to hating them at the same time ( Iknow, I’m a huge hypocrite). Wal-Mart has become so much more than a Retail/Grocery Store in the past 20 years or so. They have somehow managed to gain enough control to mandate Manufacturers to change sku’s, prices, schematics, packaging, marketing, and so much more. I could really go on and on about how the “Small Town Friend” has continually helped to destroy local business all over the US (and a little internationally too), but I’ll try to keep the focus on Wal-Marts newest attempts with their pursuance of EHR services.
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So, do I find it strange at all that WM (Wal-Mart) has decided to once again capitalize on the American People? No, not one bit. Ok, you’re saying: “Phenix, but this could help bring a much needed service that will benefit both patient and practitioner at a more affordable price, and maybe even help push for a National Health care plan!” I agree…..it does show some potential benefits, but all too well WM’s efforts have showed the same in the past resulting only in their own profit. Do we really need an institution outside of the Government to propose Unified Health care services? Say 75% of “Family Practice” institutions invest in WM’s services, and then 5-10 years later The U.S. Government implements it’s own for a National Health care Plan. Those people will not want to leave there current services because it’s potentially cheaper. Will WM’s services even care to meet new governmental regulations? At this point WM now controls 75% of practicing EHR services, and the ability to move the Government to select an inferior system based solely on the fact that it is “Cheap.”
Enough of that! I think the real reason for WM’s sudden interest (even though they say they’ve been planning on this since before Obama’s election) in EHR services is to get a piece of the $19 Billion stimulus package. What’s wrong with that you say?! Well, then a commercial business becomes Federally Funded!!! I have a huge problem with that. If the government is going to invest monies into EHR services, let it be through a government institution, not Wal-Mart!
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I’m interested in seeing how all of you feel on this subject, so please leave comments (e-mail me if you have problems registering),
-Phenix
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Thoughts on healthcare, how it should be managed, provided and paid for, will always be around and peoples’ opinions on these matters will always vary. I don’t pretend to know much about current health care systems, including how patient files are stored, how patients pay for care or how much money providers make, but I can put a little input in response to this post.
I know that Obama has mandated that all patient record keeping systems will be required to transition to electronic databases. This means that Wal-Mart is getting ready for the change and trending for it.
Even though I don’t know how much health care providers make, I do know that they make way more than the $4~10k annual incentive Wal-Mart will provide them.
I am aware of rumors spreading that Obama will want to nationalize health care.
All of these points put together means that health care providers will very soon be forced into lower paying positions for a public health care system that will offer less medical advancement because of less desire to get into the field.
More money spent on electronic patient storage systems means less money made. Even now, before nationalized health care, government health care plans (like medicare) force providers to give patients care, but lack funds to pay them. Many providers have documented months of full-time work with no pay, at all. This means that the gov’t can say whatever it wants and then do something contradictory without any repricutions.
Also, when a company is given part of the stimulus, it must limit it’s employees’ salaries to $500k, so I don’t think Wal-Mart exec’s would want to use it.
Anyway, all this crap I’m writing amounts to this: the gov’t’s fucking the health care system and the devil of today will be the angel of tomorrow. All health care providers will wish they could work for Wal-Mart.