Retail clinics expand services

In July, the nation's second-largest retail health clinic, Take Care Clinic, a subsidiary of Walgreens, announced plans to step up its services offered-including dermatology procedures-at all 345 in-store medical offices.

An official for CVS-owned MinuteClinic, the nation's largest retail clinic chain, pointed out that its 451 clinics already offer services such as wart and skin tag removal. But MinuteClinic has also added new services such as treatment of corneal abrasions, motion-sickness prevention, and college physicals, which are not offered by its competitor.

Meanwhile, 68 retail clinics have shuttered since the beginning of the year, many due to seasonal closures implemented by MinuteClinic, according to Merchant Medicine LLC, a Minneapolis-based consulting and research firm that follows the industry. In July, there were 1,107 retail clinics nationwide, only a slight increase over the 907 clinics at the end of 2007.