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January 02, 2004
Walmart: Weintraubian Perspective
Weintraub was wrong about MEChA. But he seems to be right about Walmart. Although he hasn't subscribed to capitalist/consumerist desire, I will prick up my ears from now on. What's news with blogoriffic detail is what's up with Wal-Mart's health care benefits. I have the nerve to give this to strikers whom I see every day. Give me something complete and I'll do it. You don't even have to dare me.
The company does offer benefits, and it says that about half of its workers subscribe to them, which is about average for retail operations in America. According to a recent article on this topic in the Wall Street Journal, Wal-Mart has structured its health benefits to emphasize catastrophic care. While the company has relatively high deductibles – up to $1,000 for a plan that costs an employee $13 every two weeks – it also pays 100 percent of medical charges above $1,750 a year in out-of-pocket expenses. And, according to this article, Wal-Mart has no lifetime caps on its coverage, a generous benefit offered by fewer than half of the nation’s retailers.
You can check to see what Walmart says for itself.
Posted by mbowen at January 2, 2004 02:30 PM
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