Walmart expands ReliOn brand, announces price reduction for items

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart has launched an effort to help diabetes patients save on their disease management products.

Walmart's said it is seeking to achieve its goal to help U.S. diabetes patients save up to $60 million annually by expanding its ReliOn brand, which now includes the ReliOn Prime meter (touting a suggested retail price of $16.24) and blood-sugar test strips (which will retail for $9 for 50-count strips). What's more, Walmart said it will provide increased savings on a variety of ReliOn items to help patients ease the cost of diabetes management, including gloves, lancets, syringes and more.

"Many people with diabetes struggle to manage their disease due to its terrible financial burden," Walmart president of health and wellness John Agwunobi said. "We've worked closely with our suppliers and found a way to significantly reduce the cost of diabetes products for all of our customers, whether they have insurance or not, so they can better manage their disease."

Walmart noted that its charitable arm, the Walmart Foundation, has donated more than $2 million to diabetes-focused organizations across the United States over the last fiscal year, including the American Diabetes Association, Diabetes Today Advisory Council, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Southeastern Diabetes Education Services.

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