Everything You Need To Know About The Walmart Pharmacy

Walmart is probably the most widespread and recognizable name among American Supermarkets and Department Stores. Different kinds of Walmart stores have sprung up over the years, among them is the Wal.art Pharmacy. Here we’ll be taking a deep dive into everything you could possibly want to know (and probably more) about the Wal.art Pharmacy chains, their operation, and even getting a job at one.

It’s hard to overstate the reach that Walmart and its different stores have in the retail industry. Spanning not just the United States but also the world, with 10,524 stores scattered across 24 countries. There are six different kinds of Walmart stores commonly found here in the US and this includes Walmart Discount Stores, Walmart Supercenter, Walmart Neighborhood Market, Wal.art Pharmacy, Walmart Convenience, and Walmart Pickup. As you can see the retail giant offers a wide variety of services under the brand. Recently they have also started to penetrate the healthcare sector with Walmart health and Wal.art Pharmacy. For this article, we will be looking at the Wal.art Pharmacy in detail.

We will discuss various aspects of this branch of Walmart’s business. From the services they provide, their operating hours, and even working there.

Wal.art Pharmacy is a drug store retailer that provides pharmaceutical products, services, and advice to their customers. Available here is a broad range of products from prescription to nonprescription medications, general health products, beauty, and cosmetic products, and convenience items.

Walmart pharmacies can be found on every Walmart superstore location, attached to the main retail store. If we look at the numbers, about 99.3% of Walmart stores have a pharmacy so you are sure to have seen one at least once in your lifetime. This makes them very convenient, both for customers and for Walmart.

Customers benefit from its close proximity to the other retail stores in the area that allows them easy access to the pharmacy’s services as well as the superstore. Walmart on the other hand benefits from the increased traffic that it receives for both establishments as they complement each other, as well as giving their pharmacies easy access to space as Walmart has stores across the country allowing them to easily enter the healthcare market.

The Wal.art pharmacy promises quality care and services at affordable prices, which is in line with the kind of image that Walmart has in the public consciousness. Walmart is generally seen as a budget or discount retail store, which is not to say that their products are bad, but they will definitely not break the bank.

Wal.art pharmacy actually has a related service in the form of Walmart Health, which serves as Walmart’s further attempt to break into healthcare by providing primary care services and other healthcare functions you’d find in small clinics.

Walmart health was unveiled in 2019 with the opening of the retail giant’s first health center in Dallas, Georgia alongside the Walmart supercenter located there. The services offered cover a wide range of fields, such as primary care, medical labs, X-ray and EKG readings, nutritional services, dental care, optical care, and much more.

We can see this new chain of clinics as a serious attempt by Walmart to get into the healthcare industry and it is no small thing as Walmart has the money to invest in a large chain of clinics as well as the reach to plant them everywhere they have a retail store. The available services vary by location, however, as it is a relatively new service, so you will have to check in with their website to see if the one near you can provide what you need. Also, the care clinics are closed from 1:30-2:15 PM every day for their lunch break.

Even with this wide variety of services offered Walmart health clinics are pretty affordably priced compared to their competition. On average they charge 40-60% less than other clinics for their client examinations, vaccines administration, and other treatment services. This is consistent with the Walmart business model of providing services at the lowest rates possible to generate income by drawing in large volumes of customers.

Aside from their physical clinics, Walmart has also since acquired the telehealth provider MeMD. This shows how serious the company is in committing to providing healthcare services. This means that Walmart will also be able to provide online and over-the-phone checkups and consultations through Walmart Health for patients who are unable to go to physical clinics.

This is especially relevant with the current global pandemic we are in at the moment, where physical healthcare institutions are swamped with patients at the moment and you may not be able to get your regular appointments or consultations because of the ongoing crisis. Even as it subsides there is still an inherent risk to meeting physically and so this could be a viable alternative option for you.

Now here we will be taking a look specifically at the different services provided at the Wal.art pharmacy that you can expect to see if you ever visit one.

Of course, you have your standard pharmacy fare of prescription medications and such, but there are a couple of specific services that Walmart markets that they alone provide and give them a leg up over some of the competition.

As expected from a pharmacy, Wal.art pharmacy provides prescription medication to patients who come in with their papers. You can sign up with them for your prescriptions or transfer them to Wal.art pharmacy from another if you already have a provider. When you sign up with them you can also check your dashboard on your account through their website which is a convenient tool that helps you manage the medications that you need to grab from the pharmacy. You can also have them delivered to your house or if you prefer, have your prepackaged meds readied for you to pick up at the pharmacy.

A service that Walmart proudly mentions they provide is the four-dollar prescriptions at the Wal.art pharmacy. This is a program that is part of Walmart’s claim to fame of affordability. The Four dollar prescriptions are 30-day doses of generic prescription medication that Wal.art pharmacy provides at only $4, they also provide a 90-day amount at $10.

The medications provided cover some of the most common prescription medications and are generic variants of them not coming from any particular company or name brand. If the patient needs higher dosages however it will cost them more, but the most common dosages are available in the 4 dollar prescription.

Wal.art pharmacy also offers a host of different vaccines that you can purchase from them. Another convenient part about this is they do not require appointments, so you can walk into a Walmart pharmacy, and if they have the shot available you can get it right then and there.

If you have insurance that covers it you might not even have to pay anything, but if you don’t, they offer their vaccines for very reasonable prices and should be affordable enough for most.

Some of the shots available from them include vaccines for the flu, tetanus, pneumonia, MMR, and more. In recent times because of the pandemic, it is also possible to get Covid-19 vaccines from them. However, you would need to set an appointment for a covid vaccine.

Walmart pharmacy also carries a variety of Specialty Medications that are necessary for patients that are suffering from special medical conditions. Of course, other pharmacies do this as well but at Walmart pharmacy, they provide medication counseling and support to specialty cases that come through their doors.

Since Walmart is known for its unbeatable low prices, the pharmacy tries to provide these medications at the most affordable price possible. This is achieved through close collaboration with manufacturers and prescribers of these medications.

Aside from this, there are also a variety of Patient assistance programs to help eligible patients receive discounts on their medication. Some of the special conditions that the Walmart pharmacy help manage are Anemia, Cancer, Crohn’s Disease, Cystic Fibrosis, Growth Hormones, Hemophilia, Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, Osteoporosis, Psoriasis, Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension, and Rheumatoid Arthritis, among many others.

It definitely aims to provide medications for general ailments and also expands its offering by taking care of specialized medication needs.

Walmart pharmacies are affiliated with various health insurance providers and can help you with consultations and information resources to assist in choosing one that is right for you. They offer plans from United Healthcare, Humana, Anthem, Wellcare, and Arkansas Blue Medicare. You can also learn more about Medicare from them. Medicare is a U.S. government-sponsored health insurance program that is available for U.S. citizens aged 65 and older. Some younger individuals may be eligible if they have certain disabilities or conditions. We recommend going to their website to learn more.

The Walmart Pharmacy also runs an app where you can access their services on the go. The mobile app is a potent tool for Walmart to compete with other established pharmacy chains as it provides a convenient and easily accessible way for patients to access their services. Representatives of Walmart have stated that the online pharmacy services are just an extension of their service adding new functionality and convenience to their valued customers.

Walmart’s mobile pharmacy services started to become available in 2017. Customers having the App can easily have their prescriptions refilled if you have an account, and if you don’t have an account, you can simply scan the label of the bottle and it will refill it for you. Besides refilling, patients can view their order details, history, expiration dates, and other important details.

Next up we’ll be talking about the Walmart pharmacy hours of operation for 2021.

Walmart supercenters usually operate 24 hours a day 7 days a week (although it still varies from place to place) so you would assume that the pharmacies that are anchored there would be the same. But this isn’t the case as the pharmacies do close for a time during the night.

There is some variation depending on where you are but generally, you can expect the Walmart pharmacy hours to be quite consistent even in different branches. So what time does the Walmart pharmacy close? Well, that depends on the day.

The Walmart pharmacy closes at 9:00 pm on Weekdays and 7:00 pm on Saturdays, 6:00 pm on Sundays. So if we laid out the Walmart pharmacy hours it would be something like Store open from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm from Mondays to Fridays, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm on Saturdays, and 10:30 am to 6:00 pm on Sundays.

Now that you know what time does the Walmart pharmacy closes, let’s find out if it has the same operating hours during holidays. There are also certain holidays where the operating hours for the pharmacy are different. These are New Year’s Day, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving, and Easter.

Walmart is a large provider of jobs for many Americans, both their main retail stores and more specialized stores. The company is the largest private employer in the entire world, with around 2.2 million employees as of 2020.

For the pharmacy specifically, there are over 5000 Walmart and Sam’s Club pharmacies across the United States, so the reach of Walmart’s medical services as a pharmaceutical retailer is unprecedented.

Although it might not sound very glamorous, working for Walmart can promise some good stable employment, and you might want to count yourself among the number of their employees at the Walmart pharmacy.

Here we will take a look at the different Walmart pharmacy jobs you can expect to find openings for at the various pharmacies that Walmart runs. Some of these include the following.

The pharmacies run by Walmart have a large number of positions open for internships of people who are in their pre-graduate courses pursuing higher education to become a licensed pharmacist.

Here you can learn from licensed professionals working with state-of-the-art equipment and techniques. These positions are by their nature temporary and are open for those seeking hands-on experience and supervision from licensed pharmacists as a requirement to complete their degree programs. Openings for internships can be found on their website.

Another position that usually has openings at Walmart pharmacies is Pharmacy technicians. Pharmacy technicians are responsible for supplying both over-the-counter and prescription medicine to patients, Providing information to customers, managing the medication dispensaries, processing insurance claims, tracking inventory, and the packaging and labeling of prescription medications.

All of this is under the supervision and close coordination of the resident licensed pharmacist delivering quality customer service alongside some of the top pharmacy professionals. If you are looking to further advance a career in the pharmaceutical industry then this can also be a stepping stone for you to acquire experience and learn from professionals to give you an edge when pursuing further education. Again all openings are available for viewing on their website.

Finally, of course, we have the resident pharmacists. Pharmacists of course are medication experts and are critical in making sure that patients get the best results from their medications.

In the pharmacy the role they play is: preparing and dispensing prescriptions, ensuring doses and types of medication are correct, preventing harmful drug interactions, and of course giving advice to patients on the safe and appropriate use of the medicine they provide.

Walmart prides itself on their pharmacies providing superior healthcare as well as competitive wages for their employees. Creating an environment that benefits both customers and their workers.

If any of these job opportunities interest you, it would do you well to check out Walmart’s website on their job offerings. There are a few things to keep in mind however before going in. Such as:

• You can only apply online to job positions posted on their website. This will state the position available and the location where it is available.

• If you are applying for an hourly role at a Walmart pharmacy/club, you will need to contact the personnel office at that specific store you are interested in. There you will share what you will need to complete the application.

• If you are applying for a salaried position at the Home Office, you need to get into contact with a recruiter about reasonable accommodation. After this, you will receive an interview or further communication for consideration for the position.

• You can select multiple locations in your area that have job openings available on their website. This is done by clicking on the boxes next to the listings that most interest you.

• You will receive a confirmation on their website if your application has been accepted at a location that you applied to.

Walmart also runs a pharmacy residency program. This is called the Walmart Community Residency Program which aims to provide the tools, skills, and experience for professionals to provide superior clinical care and advance in the pharmaceutical industry. The program is partnered with The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences or UAMS, as well as the Chicago State University College of Pharmacy.

The resident program provided together with UAMS is in partnership with their College of Pharmacy. It aims to provide the opportunity to develop the skills of future pharmacy leaders that can provide measurable healthcare improvements and outcomes for patients. The program offered in conjunction with Chicago State University College of Pharmacy offers a 12-month PGY-1 Community Pharmacy Residency Program. This is a postdoctoral program aimed at those who seek advanced training in community pharmacy. This may also benefit those looking to get into academia and ambulatory care. Only one position is available for this program, that offers unique opportunities and experiences that develop clinical, teaching, and leadership skills in participants.

So after talking about all those Walmart pharmacy jobs, perhaps you find that you are interested to apply. But another question you need to ask is how much does a Walmart pharmacist make? After all, Walmart touts itself as having affordable prices and competitive wages, so how competitive is it exactly?

According to ZipRecruiter.com, as of September of 2021, the average annual salary of a Walmart pharmacist is $81,113. If we break this down, that means that on average a pharmacist at Walmart pharmacy earns about $39 an hour, which is equivalent to about $6,759 a month. This is however just the average earnings of a Walmart pharmacist.

There are some significant deviations in reported incomes. This is because your working arrangement will depend on the branch, what your actual job position is, and whatever deal you have struck with your employer. There are Walmart pharmacists that make as much as $145,000 a year. According to the data from ZipRecruiter however, most Walmart pharmacists make between $33,000 and $116,500 a year.

According to the site, the highest paying Walmart pharmacies are mostly located in the State of California, with the top three cities for it being San Mateo, Berkeley, and Daly City. So when asking “how much does a Walmart pharmacist make?” It is not so clear-cut, but we hope that this answer will suffice and give you a general idea.

If you are interested in becoming a pharmacist we have laid out here the common path and requirements it takes to become one. To become a pharmacist usually takes 6-8 years of higher education.

The degree granted is a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) and is a postgraduate program that prepares students for a career as a professional pharmacist. Before taking a doctor of pharmacy degree it is necessary to complete at least 2 years of undergraduate coursework that is specific to the pharmaceutical field. These can include degrees such as General Chemistry, Biology, Organic chemistry, Microbiology, Physiology, and Biochemistry, among others. After this only then can you take your 4 academic years of professional study. After completing this degree program the graduate must pass the state board of pharmacy licensure exam to practice professionally.

If after you finish your degree you decide to further your education that is also a viable option. You can pursue a master of science or Ph.D. degree. This can be a good option if you would prefer to get into research and like laboratory work.

Another option for Pharm.D. graduates is to further their training with residency programs like the one we previously discussed. These are one to two-year programs or fellowships that help train pharmacy graduates in a post-graduate training program. These are designed to give them practical experience in a more realistic environment to help build your credentials for that lucrative job opportunity you are looking to pursue.

The pharmacy profession is not just relegated to community pharmacies (retail) like we previously discussed with Walmart pharmacies. Pharmacists can choose to work in hospitals, research and development, poison control centers, emergency rooms, long-term care facilities, the military, and much more. The skills that they can bring to the table in the handling, developing, and management of medications are invaluable in many fields and industries. In most settings, you’ll be on your feet for most of the working day though, so you can look forward to that if it’s something you like.

If you plan instead to challenge the industry giants like Walmart and start your pharmacy, it could also help to get a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) to help you along in your business.

After talking about all that, how about a bit of information about the multi-billion dollar retail giant we all know and love, or at least we patronize it from time to time.

Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation that runs chains of hypermarkets, department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and abroad. But you probably already knew that. The company is headquartered in the city of Bentonville, Arkansas. The company has 10,524 stores worldwide operating in 24 different countries. The Walmart you know might be known under a different name in other territories, however, as the company operates under 48 different names across the countries that it services.

If your only metric of success is revenue then Walmart is the most successful in the world as it is the largest company in the world by revenue. Walmart earned over $548 billion in revenue in 2020. Although it is a publicly traded company it is still considered a family business as the Walton family still owns more than 50% of the company’s shares making it essentially controlled by Sam Walton’s heirs.

The company has done well in its overseas expansions, particularly in regions like Canada, Central, and South America, China, and the United Kingdom. It has had failures as well though, such as in places like Germany, Japan, and South Korea.

Walmart, which was originally called Wal-mart discount city, was founded by Sam Walton in 1962. Their first store was opened near the city of Rogers, Arkansas. The primary focus of Walmart at the time was to sell items at the lowest price possible (which still stands true today). This meant that the business relied on large volumes of sales with low-profit margins. This was marketed as a consumer-friendly option, looking out for them by not charging them exorbitant prices for goods. This worked and allowed Walmart to undercut the competition and soon it was seeing more and more business from residents of the area.

The company was first incorporated in 1969 as “Wal-mart, Inc”. This changed to “Wal-mart Stores, Inc.” in the year 1970. By this time the company was employing 1,500 people and operated 38 stores. This year was also another landmark in that the company started to trade its stocks publicly on the New York stock exchange. The 1980s saw a period of massive growth for the company and by 1987 the company operated 1,198 stores and recorded sales of $15.9 billion.

It started in the 1990s when Walmart became the largest retailer in the entire United States of America by revenue. This is also the time when Walmart started to expand into the west coast where it previously had no presence, opening its first stores in California and Pennsylvania. By the mid-90sChemistrytohad expanded into Mexico and Canada. The last state to get a Walmart was Vermont in 1995. Walmart also bought foreign retailers and managed them under the wider Walmart name, such as Asda in the UK, which the company bought for $10 billion.

Starting around 2006 Walmart had a campaign to rebrand itself and start appealing to more demographics of shoppers. It remade its image from the budget store to a more universal sort of retailer to appeal to the more affluent customer base. It is through this period that we see the Walmart that exists today start to take shape.

So to conclude, the Walmart pharmacy has a very large reach of operations by Walmart’s ubiquitous presence across the United States and the size of the company and its revenue has allowed their pharmacies and other health service providers to keep their prices low. It seems as well that Walmart is seriously trying to expand its operations into the healthcare sector with the expansion into telehealth services and online services for their pharmacy, and that is to say nothing about their foray into actual primary care clinics and veterinary clinics.

We hope this article has helped you get the information you wanted (and probably more) about Walmart Pharmacy, its services, job openings, and some history as well.

This post is originally published at Florida Independent.