Walmart confirmed this week to Insider that it had hired Dr. David Carmouche to lead its multifaceted healthcare initiative.  

Carmouche, who has worked at Louisiana-based Ochsner Health for six years, will oversee Walmart's growing clinical care projects as senior vice president of Omnichannel Care Solutions, as explained by the Greater Baton Rouge Business Report.

GBR's Stephanie Riegel says Carmouche will be beginning his new role starting November 29.  

Ochsner and Walmart did not respond to requests for comment by press time.  

WHY IT MATTERS

Walmart has continued to make moves into the healthcare industry with a multipronged approach to expansion.   

This summer, Insider reported that Walmart Health's primary care provider had filed to do business in 37 states – likely related to the company's telehealth aspirations.  

The retail giant is also operating clinics in three states, with plans to open more in a fourth.  

Carmouche will lead the national expansion, Riegel reported.  

Carmouche has been with Ochsner Health, where he is an executive vice president of value-based care and operations, since 2015.   

Prior to that, he was chief medical officer and executive VP of external operations at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, as well as serving as medical director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Baton Rouge Clinic, AMC from 1997 to 2012.  

He received his medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans in 1993.  

THE LARGER TREND  

Carmouche's hiring represents yet another major move for Walmart, which has been touting its approach to care for several months.  

"Today people expect omnichannel access to care and adding telehealth to our Walmart Health care strategies allows us to provide in-person and digital care across our multiple assets and solutions," said Dr. Cheryl Pegus, the executive vice president of Health and Wellness at Walmart, in a statement regarding the company's MeMD acquisition this June.  

In September, Walmart also announced a partnership with Epic, saying it would eventually use the electronic health record software in all of its health and wellness lines of business.  

ON THE RECORD  

Walmart "feel[s] well positioned to solve some of the challenges of rural health care," said Carmouche, according to GBR's Riegel. "They want to build something that is accessible to everyone, which means targeting both underserved and well-served populations. But I think their model will be really effective at reaching some corners of the country that don’t have great primary care."

Kat Jercich is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Twitter: @kjercich
Email: kjercich@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.