- Walmart will start to sell a less expensive version of analog insulin to people who do not have health insurance or struggle to afford the drug’s cost.
- The company has made a bigger push into health care as it tries to leverage its massive reach for new opportunities.
- It has sought to bring “everyday low price” to medical care by opening primary care clinics and acquiring a telehealth company.
Walmart said Tuesday it will offer a less expensive version of insulin that could better fit into the budgets of millions of Americans who don’t have health insurance or struggle to pay for the lifesaving diabetes drug.
Starting this week, the retailer will sell an exclusive private-label version of analog insulin, ReliOn NovoLog, to adults and children who have a prescription. The drug will be available at its membership-based Sam’s Club in mid-July. The insulin will cost about $73 for a vial or about $86 for a package of prefilled insulin pens.
The insulin is the latest addition to Walmart’s private brand of diabetes products, ReliOn. It already sells a low-price version of insulin for about $25 as part of the line, but that is an older formulation that some doctors and advocates say is not as effective at managing blood sugar swings as newer versions of insulin, called analogs.