McKesson and Walmart recently announced an agreement to jointly source generic pharmaceuticals for their U.S. business.
With this agreement, they have expanded their long-term distribution agreement. The companies believe that this is a natural next step as they have a long history of working together to lower the cost of pharmaceutical care. The agreement leverages McKesson’s expertise in the global pharmaceutical industry and Walmart’s proven commutment to delivering leading health and wellness services at an everyday low price.
“McKesson and Walmart have worked together for decades and throughout our relationship both companies have engaged in an on-going dialogue about how we can work together to bring more efficiency and value to the health care supply chain,” said Mark Walchirk, president, McKesson U.S. Pharmaceutical. “Expanding our relationship to include a sourcing partnership for generics makes economic and strategic sense for both of us—by bringing together our respective scale and sourcing expertise, we will make our businesses stronger and create more value for our customers and patients.”
“Walmart and McKesson have built a strong business relationship over the past 30 years by working together to help lower the cost of health care,” said George Riedl, senior vice president and president, Health and Wellness, Walmart U.S. “The dynamics of health care continue to change, and we’re changing with it. It’s why we are taking our relationship with McKesson to the next level, using our combined size and scale to drive efficiencies, something that is core to our business.”
It has not yet been discussed whether this venture will extend to Canada. Vice President of Public Affairs David Simmonds states in an email that, “While excited about the opportunity this extended relationship will bring for our partners at Walmart, the corporation is still in the early stages of establishing details.”
About McKesson Corporation
McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 11th on the FORTUNE 500, is a health care services and information technology company dedicated to making the business of health care run better. McKesson partners with payers, hospitals, physician offices, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies and others across the spectrum of care to build healthier organizations that deliver better care to patients in every setting. McKesson helps its customers improve their financial, operational, and clinical performance with solutions that include pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management, health care information technology, and business and clinical services. For more information, visit www.mckesson.com.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, nearly 260 million customers and members visit our 11,528 stores under 72 banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries. With fiscal year 2016 revenue of $482.1 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visitinghttp://corporate.walmart.com
