GNC Launches Telehealth, Prescription Medication Services

GNC, a global retailer selling health and nutrition products, is launching a virtual care service offering members three tiers of care.

Called GNC Health, the virtual care service provides individuals and families access to telehealth services for various common health conditions, including allergies, asthma, sexual health, colds, influenza, physical therapy, and mental healthcare. The service also provides access to more than 400 eligible prescription medications.

The three membership tiers are GNC Health Basic, GNC Health Plus, and GNC Health Premier.

The Basic plan is an individual plan costing $34.99 a year. It provides unlimited access to virtual urgent and lifestyle care and 100-plus prescription medications. The Plus plan, with a monthly cost of $9.99 for individuals and $29.99 for families, includes virtual urgent, primary care, and lifestyle care services and 400-plus prescription medications. Family access includes up to six immediate family members in the same household.

The Premier plan includes virtual mental health and physical therapy care services in addition to all the services offered in the Basic and Plus plans. This plan costs $39.99 monthly for individuals and $59.99 monthly for families.

According to the press release, the telehealth services and medications are included at a $0 copay. GNC Health also provides up to an 80 percent discount on thousands of other drugs at retail pharmacies.

"We envision GNC Health as a way to broaden our consumer reach and bring people meaningful health and wellness solutions because everyone deserves the opportunity to Live Well," said Allison Bentley, senior director of strategic programs at GNC Health, in the press release. "With GNC Health, we're supporting our consumers' health and wellness journeys while keeping our core brand relevant and top-of-mind."

The newly launched virtual care service builds on the supplemental healthcare service offered to GNC PRO Access members in July. GNC expanded its loyalty program to offer PRO Access members telehealth appointments, 40 generic versions of common urgent care medications, and 70-plus generic personal health medications. Now, PRO Access members will have the option to keep their current plan or upgrade.

The GNC Health launch comes on the heels of multiple retailers unveiling virtual care services.

Earlier this month, Costco and Walmart announced partnerships focused on virtual care. Costco is partnering with healthcare marketplace platform Sesame to offer members virtual primary care at $29, health check-ups with a standard laboratory panel and virtual follow-up at $72, and virtual mental health therapy at $79.

Walmart is expanding its no-copay virtual primary care service for employees and their families in partnership with Included Health. The company, which employs 1.6 million people in the United States, will offer virtual access to preventive care, chronic care management, and mental health support.

Technology companies like Amazon and retail pharmacy chains like Walgreens are also entering the fray.

Walgreens announced the launch of a virtual healthcare solution in October that will connect patients to care for conditions like respiratory illness, allergies, urinary tract infections, and acne via chat or video. After the consultation, they can access prescriptions at Walgreens stores or through the Walgreens prescription delivery service. The chat-enabled virtual visits will cost $33 out-of-pocket, and video visits will vary from $36 to $75.

According to several experts who spoke with mHealthIntelligence, retailers have a competitive edge in the virtual care space.

“Retailers uniquely bring a physical scale and community presence that are hugely valuable for delivering an omnichannel experience,” said Chris Lew, consulting engagement manager at Rock Health Advisory, in an interview. “The recent moves retailers have made to bolster their virtual capabilities enable consumers like this to get all their needs met under one ‘roof’ in a highly integrated way.”