5 ms·

If my only option was Walmart-quality healthcare, I'd probably be better off not using it.

jariel 6y ago
Walmart provides a decent quality product at a decent price. Their business is designed around tearing out margins in the value chain, and passing the savings along to customers. It's a business strategy unheard of - not only do they pass on a lot of savings, they force vendors to do so as well. The healthcare system is completely fat with gristle, exactly what we need is a Walmart barking up the long-tail. $15K-$20K for setting a broke arm? I don't think so. $30 for the Aspirin while you're at it? No. $2K for the scan? No goddam way. Walmart would probably only get into things that could be 'very well operationalised' ie more common stuff. And consider the vicious leverage they would have over drug makers ... Healthcare is 15% of the economy and growing, Walmart tearing into Healthcare would be more transformative that the existence of Google. For any service that Walmart provided, I would be glad to go there.
- loco5niner 6y ago
  Have you bought clothes at Walmart? Shoes? How long did they last? Not long I'll bet. I'm sure you can find some quality items at Walmart, but you have to shop carefully. If we were talking Costco healthcare, I'd be all in. All the "cut the fat" talk you mention, and you still end up with a quality product at a reasonable price.
  - cookiecaper 6y ago
    They're serving different market segments. Costco literally charges an admission fee. "Pay me money to come spend more money inside my store and it'll be really cool, promise" is the antithesis of the Walmart philosophy. Walmart itself recognizes this, which is why Sam's Club exists (no reason to let a competitor run away with that less price-sensitive market segment without a fight, of course). For any arbitrary shopper-item combination, as long as the item can fit the basic merchantability requirements over the duration of the return period, the only significant criterion is going to be price. Knowing this and then ensuring that they have the cheapest merchantable items in every product class is how Walmart became the de-facto shopping nexus everywhere that major social and/or governmental interference hasn't stopped them. It's the place to go to get the stuff you have to buy, not the stuff you want to buy. If your standards are too high to wear a shirt that consists of 80% recycled plastic, you don't buy shirts at Walmart. But that doesn't mean you automatically have the same high standards for a garden spade, a toilet seat, or a kitchen spatula. If we imagine that we need all four of these items today, we go to Walmart to buy the latter three and then use the money saved to invest in a better 100% cotton shirt from $FAVORITE_SHIRT_VENDOR.
    - loco5niner 6y ago
      > For any arbitrary shopper-item combination, as long as the item can fit the basic merchantability requirements over the duration of the return period, the only significant criterion is going to be price. Disagree, quality matters.
  - mitchdoogle 6y ago
    I have purchased clothes, shoes, and just about every other household item at Walmart at some point in my life. The quality is no different from buying things in the same price range at any store, in person or online. Often, the stores are selling the exact same thing from the same manufacturers.
- NotSammyHagar 6y ago
  Lots of businesses do similar to Walmart. Walmart can still make huge profits. Amazon constantly does things cheaper, prices go down, customers benefit. Same as walmart, and those lower prices make it hard for competitors.

Walmart provides a decent quality product at a decent price. Their business is designed around tearing out margins in the value chain, and passing the savings along to customers. It's a business strategy unheard of - not only do they pass on a lot of savings, they force vendors to do so as well. The healthcare system is completely fat with gristle, exactly what we need is a Walmart barking up the long-tail. $15K-$20K for setting a broke arm? I don't think so. $30 for the Aspirin while you're at it? No. $2K for the scan? No goddam way. Walmart would probably only get into things that could be 'very well operationalised' ie more common stuff. And consider the vicious leverage they would have over drug makers ... Healthcare is 15% of the economy and growing, Walmart tearing into Healthcare would be more transformative that the existence of Google. For any service that Walmart provided, I would be glad to go there.

loco5niner 6y ago
Have you bought clothes at Walmart? Shoes? How long did they last? Not long I'll bet. I'm sure you can find some quality items at Walmart, but you have to shop carefully. If we were talking Costco healthcare, I'd be all in. All the "cut the fat" talk you mention, and you still end up with a quality product at a reasonable price.
- cookiecaper 6y ago
  They're serving different market segments. Costco literally charges an admission fee. "Pay me money to come spend more money inside my store and it'll be really cool, promise" is the antithesis of the Walmart philosophy. Walmart itself recognizes this, which is why Sam's Club exists (no reason to let a competitor run away with that less price-sensitive market segment without a fight, of course). For any arbitrary shopper-item combination, as long as the item can fit the basic merchantability requirements over the duration of the return period, the only significant criterion is going to be price. Knowing this and then ensuring that they have the cheapest merchantable items in every product class is how Walmart became the de-facto shopping nexus everywhere that major social and/or governmental interference hasn't stopped them. It's the place to go to get the stuff you have to buy, not the stuff you want to buy. If your standards are too high to wear a shirt that consists of 80% recycled plastic, you don't buy shirts at Walmart. But that doesn't mean you automatically have the same high standards for a garden spade, a toilet seat, or a kitchen spatula. If we imagine that we need all four of these items today, we go to Walmart to buy the latter three and then use the money saved to invest in a better 100% cotton shirt from $FAVORITE_SHIRT_VENDOR.
  - loco5niner 6y ago
    > For any arbitrary shopper-item combination, as long as the item can fit the basic merchantability requirements over the duration of the return period, the only significant criterion is going to be price. Disagree, quality matters.
- mitchdoogle 6y ago
  I have purchased clothes, shoes, and just about every other household item at Walmart at some point in my life. The quality is no different from buying things in the same price range at any store, in person or online. Often, the stores are selling the exact same thing from the same manufacturers.
NotSammyHagar 6y ago
Lots of businesses do similar to Walmart. Walmart can still make huge profits. Amazon constantly does things cheaper, prices go down, customers benefit. Same as walmart, and those lower prices make it hard for competitors.