Walmart to stop accepting military prescription health insurance

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) - Express Scripts recently ended a multi-year agreement to participate as a pharmacy provider for the Tricare network, affecting veterans and members of the military that fill their prescriptions at Walmart.

We were surprised to hear Express Scripts ended our multi-year agreement to participate as a pharmacy provider for the Tricare network just a few days after Walmart and Express Scripts signed an agreement on September 30 for Walmart to serve these members for the next several years. We value our Tricare and DOD customers and are disappointed in Express Script's decision and we have requested more information from them to understand their decision. We have asked Express Scripts to honor the agreement we both recently signed. We know many members of the military, veterans and their families rely on Walmart for convenient access to affordable prescriptions and this decision will limit their options. We hope to come to a resolution to continue as a pharmacy provider for the Tricare network. Walmart will continue to offer everyday low pricing on generic drugs that can be accessed by all customers with or without insurance.

Luke Kleyn, Vice President of Payer Relations at Walmart

A local veteran reached out to KNWA/FOX24 News to inform us that he was told by Walmart that they will no longer accept his Tricare insurance, effective December 15, 2021.

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In addition to the above statement, a response from the Bentonville-based retailer noted that "Walmart is a long-time supporter of providing pharmacy services to our military communities."

Walmart has said it's committed to supporting the active-duty military, veterans, and their families through various initiatives such as:

* Meeting commitment to hire 250,000 veterans.

* Within the last year, Walmart has hired over 49,000 veterans and 27,000 active-duty military spouses.

* Creating the Find A Future platform, which will further aid the men and women transitioning from the armed forces to civilian life.

* Over the last decade, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation have granted more than $40 million to organizations that support veterans and military spouses.

* Walmart is a long-time supporter of also providing pharmacy services to our military communities.

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Several years ago, Walmart announced its Veterans Welcome Home Commitment to hiring 250,000 veterans by 2020.

Since 2013, Walmart has hired more than 400,000 veterans and military spouses at Walmart and Sam's Club, according to a release. Since May 2021, Walmart has hired almost 30,000 veterans and military spouses – more than we ever have in a single quarter in the company's history.