Has Dollar General quit its brief foray into healthcare services?
The discount store chain, which launched a mobile healthcare clinic partnership in January 2023, appears to have removed mentions of the program from the landing page for its healthcare initiative some time in the last several months. And DocGo, the mobile clinic operator that Dollar General partnered with to run the small program, no longer offers appointments at Dollar General locations in Tennessee where it was being tested, according to a call to DocGo’s appointment hotline.
Dollar General partnered with DocGo to deliver urgent and preventative care to customers at three Dollar General locations in Tennessee. Clinicians performed checkups, vaccinations and lab testing, along with management for some chronic conditions such as diabetes. The small program was an early step in Dollar General’s plan to become — in its words — a “health destination” for rural communities. The company said in a June post last year that it plans to expand the mobile clinic offering to additional stores in the future.
Dollar General and DocGo did not respond to repeated requests for comment about the changes to the website and if Dollar General had fully exited the program. While the retailer’s website still has a “DG Wellbeing” section, it no longer features the mobile clinics above its list of over-the-counter health products.
An end to the fledgling program would mark another in a string of ill-fated attempts by retailers to get into the business of delivering healthcare services. Last month, Walmart shut down its healthcare business, closing 51 primary care clinics and its virtual care offering. And in March, Walgreens said it was closing 160 VillageMD clinics.
Dollar General first unveiled plans to push into healthcare in 2021. It hired a chief medical officer, former McKinsey consultant Dr. Albert Wu, and said it would stock more medicines and other health products in its stores. It also said it planned to offer healthcare services. But aside from the mobile clinic pilot, the chain’s push has been limited.
Wu didn’t respond to an attempt to reach him on LinkedIn.
Dollar General will report its first-quarter earnings on Thursday.
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