Amazon, Walmart Push Healthcare Offerings

Retail giants Amazon and Walmart stepped up their healthcare marketing this week as they make broader pushes into the wellness business. In a Wednesday email, Amazon linked to a dedicated Amazon Pharmacy webpage calling itself “the pharmacy that really delivers” with “upfront pricing,” easy refills and no waiting in line at a pharmacy. Customers plug in their medication to find Amazon prices. The landing page showed the e-commerce company’s Prime member prices vs. regular prices for common medications including Setraline, generic for Zoloft ($13.10 vs. $31.80); Atorvastatin, generic for Lipitor ($10.10 vs. $78.90); Montelukast, generic for Singulair ($12.50 vs. $69); Lisinopril ($3.80 vs. $17.10) and Escitalopram, generic for Lexapro ($10.10 vs. $51). Customers can shop “by condition.” Walmart blogged Tuesday that it’s partnering with Waldo to make eyecare more accessible and affordable. It’s the exclusive retailer for Waldo contact lenses that are “enriched with essential vitamins, including B12, to help refresh and rejuvenate eyes.” The 30-pack of Waldo Hydra Boost Daily Lenses is 13%-84% off the cash price of comparable branded daily disposable lenses at Walmart, said the retailer.