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North Texas Walmarts Are Launching Oak Street Health Clinics

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Chicago-based Oak Street Health announced its arrival in North Texas earlier this year, and now the value-based network is partnering with the world’s largest corporation. Walmart will be launching Oak Street Health in three of its supercenters in Dallas-Fort Worth this year.

Walmart Supercenters in Arlington, Benbrook, and Carrollton will soon transition their Walmart Care Clinics to Oak Street Health centers.

“As we grow Walmart Health locations in other markets, we think Oak Street Health’s innovative value-based healthcare model will help us continue to deliver on our live better promise at these locations,” said said Marcus Osborne, senior vice president of Walmart Health via release.

A rendering of the Benbrook Walmart with Oak Street Health clinic (IMAGE CREDIT: Oak Street Health)

The clinics will offer comprehensive and preventative primary care and urgent care services. Extended hours for walk-ins and same day appointments are part of the plans as well. All patients are welcome to the clinic, but Oak Street says its focus is on the Medicare population. There are 60 Oak Street locations around the country and the clinics’ patients have experienced a 41 percent reduction in hospital visits and a 49 percent reduction in emergency room visits compared to Medicare benchmarks.

“It is our mission at Oak Street Health to rebuild healthcare as it should be, and that aligns directly with Walmart’s history of providing accessible and equitable health care in communities across the country,” said Mike Pykosz, CEO of Oak Street Health via release. “We look forward to becoming a positive addition to the neighborhood in these new markets and providing an unmatched healthcare experience in a convenient location.”

 

Source: D CEO Healthcare Magazine

What’s Behind Medical Office Buildings’ Strong Trajectory

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One of the US’ fastest growing industries, healthcare spending reached almost $3.5 trillion annually in 2017.

The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services anticipates national healthcare expenditures to grow to $5.7 trillion by 2026. With this growth, healthcare real estate, specifically medical office buildings, are poised for further success.

Medical Office Buildings

Medical office buildings comprise approximately 10% percent of the US office sector. These buildings are typically about 40,000 square feet and range from small physician offices to large healthcare systems. Investors are attracted to this asset class due to its stability and positive forecasts for a strong performance. On the rise for the last four years, medical office sales totaled $10.4 billion in 2018.

“Medical office buildings are so popular and are in demand as a renovation or as new construction,” says Jason Signor, CEO and partner of Caddis Healthcare Real Estate. “The market is phenomenal and occupancy levels and rental rates are healthy.”

It is well-known that the the aging US population is directly correlated with the rising demand for healthcare as doctor visits dramatically increase with age. Individuals 65 years and older spend five times more on healthcare than those who are younger. Yet, even with the favorable demographic and economic backdrop, new healthcare construction has not kept up with demand.

“With the continued shift from inpatient to outpatient care, new real estate strategies are being implemented which includes moving to urgent care centers, MOBs, micro-hospitals and health-system sponsored wellness centers,” says Signor. “ Outpatient care is booming and will continue to flourish in the future. The challenge, of course, is for our sector to keep up with the growing demand.”

Ambulatory Surgery Centers

Ambulatory surgery centers—healthcare facilities which offer patients the option of having procedures and surgeries performed outside of the hospital setting—have drastically reduced healthcare costs. According to the American Hospital Association, the number of ASCs and hospitals are almost equal with 5,534 hospitals and 5,532 surgery centers. While hospitals have declined by 5%, surgery centers have grown as much as 82% since 2000.

“ASCs will continue to dominate the healthcare real estate landscape,” says Signor. “We won’t see these large hospital campuses being built as much. As the campuses get older however, you will see more renovations as hospitals keep up with medical technological advances and stay abreast with ASCs.”

 

Source: GlobeSt.