Wal-Mart Health Care Benefits Enrollment Rises, Uninsured Rate Declines

    Total associate health coverage increases to more than 94 percent

   BENTONVILLE, Ark., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wal-Mart Stores,
Inc., (NYSE: WMT) announced today that the number of associates who have
health care coverage through its benefits plans for 2009 or another source
has increased from 92.7 percent to 94.5 percent. Over 733,000 or 51.8
percent of associates - and nearly 1.2 million associates and dependants in
total - were covered by Wal-Mart's plans at the end of its annual
enrollment period.*

   The company also announced that the number of uninsured associates has
dropped by nearly 25 percent in the past year and by more than 40 percent
between 2007 and 2009. Compared to the most recently reported data by the
U.S. Census Bureau, Wal-Mart's uninsured rate of 5.5 percent is 11.3
percent lower than the uninsured rate nationwide for the U.S. employed
population (16.8 percent). The percentage of U.S. employers who offer
health benefits fell from 69 percent in 2000 to 63 percent in 2008,
according to a Kaiser Family Foundation study.

   "We're creating good jobs and providing good benefits for our
associates at all levels of the company, from part-time hourly associates
to full-time managers," said Eduardo Castro-Wright, vice chairman of
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. "So, it's gratifying that for the fifth year in a row
the number of Wal-Mart associates enrolled in the company's health care
plans has increased."

   This year, the company added more disease and illness prevention
options including its new "Life with Baby" program which helps mothers and
their babies get a healthy start on the child's life. Life with Baby
provides free, personalized counseling and advice by a professional nurse
through pre-conception, pregnancy, postpartum and early childhood
development. Wal-Mart also introduced several benefits innovations,
including personalized health records (PHRs) to help associates keep track
of their medical files and make more informed health care decisions.

   "Since we began offering PHRs just a few months ago, more than 50,000
of our associates have signed up, which we believe demonstrates that
consumers are ready and willing to use technology to take control of their
own health and wellness," said Linda Dillman, executive vice president of
benefits for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. "We hope that our government will study
the many ways in which technology can be applied in considering health care
reform for our nation this year."

PRNEWSWIRE