Walgreen offers free care to jobless, uninsured

[April 01, 2009]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Drugstore operator Walgreen will offer free walk-in clinic services to the unemployed and uninsured for the rest of the year, though they'll still pay for prescriptions.

The program provides tests and routine treatment for minor ailments and illnesses to patients who lose their job and health insurance after March 31.

Walgreen says it doesn't know how much the program will cost the company. But it's likely to bring in new customers. Walgreen says 30 percent of walk-in clinic patients are new to the store. Typically the visits cost $59 or more.

The program does not include checkups or vaccinations.

Walgreen runs 341 in-store clinics in 35 markets around the country.

[Associated Press]

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