'Bad Doctors' Put on Notice: Walmart is Coming And You're Not Going to Like What Happens

How Can Walmart Change Healthcare? By Using Massive Data Banks to I.D. Incompetent/Unethical MDs

Yes, Virginia, in case you haven't noticed, Walmart is flexing its muscles. They're not just selling more bananas that anybody else. They're looking to smack down a whole ton of questionable doctors.

At the core of Walmart's innovative approach to healthcare is historical analysis, using the Centers of Excellence Network program The end result is a weeding out of physicians who don't practice evidence-based medicine.

Walmart is utilizing the data program to compare - for example - patient treatment recommendations of physicians within the Centers of Excellence Network, to all the rest. And they say the results are revealing widespread faulty diagnoses and far too much overtreatment. (Something The Paramedic Heretic has been telling you for years)

Even in their early assessments, Walmart is finding that fully half the patients who have been told they need surgery, did not require surgery at all.

Walmart's new approach may very well force doctors who don't practice evidence-based medicine, right out of the marketplace - something the existing power-players - insurance carriers, state boards and medical associations - have been unable to do.

A MedPageToday study revealed that even state medical boards fail to use the national database created to identify physicians convicted of malpractice. The research demonstrated that less than half of the nation's state medical boards used the questionable doctor database as often as they should. This fact alone is appalling because medical errors are the third leading cause of death in America,

"Our customers need access to affordable healthcare and by God, we are going to give it to them," Osborne said. "This is not just about price but the total package: Appropriate care, value, and price." (Marcus Osborne, vice president of health transformation at Walmart)