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Walgreens will squeeze primary care clinics into as many as 700 of its U.S. stores over the next few years in a major expansion of the care it offers customers. The drugstore chain said Wednesday that it will partner with VillageMD to set up doctor-led clinics that also use nurses, social workers and therapists to provide regular treatment for patients. (Murphy, 7/8)

Walgreens Boots Alliance is investing $1 billion in a Chicago-based primary care startup as the pair plan to open at least 500 clinics at stores in more than 30 U.S. markets. The deal expands on the Deerfield-based drugstore chain’s partnership with VillageMD, which started with five in-store clinics in the Houston area. (Goldberg, 7/8)

Another health network is bidding farewell to its independence. Arlington Heights-based Northwest Community Healthcare has agreed to join five-hospital NorthShore University HealthSystem. Wednesday’s merger announcement comes at a particularly challenging time for hospitals and clinics, as COVID-19 drives up costs and drains revenues. But even before the pandemic, community hospitals were under pressure to address mounting operating costs and curb overall medical spending. (Goldberg, 7/8)

An Oklahoma City hospital, physician group and management company have reached a $72.3 million settlement over allegations of a kickback scheme brought forth by a whistleblower. Oklahoma Center for Orthopaedic and Multi-Specialty Surgery, and its part-owner and management company, USP OKC Inc. and USP OKC Manager Inc., along with Southwest Orthopaedic Specialists and two of their physicians, will pay the massive settlement to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act and the Oklahoma Medicaid False Claims Act. (Dulaney, 7/9)

The Department of Justice has reached a $77.2 million settlement over false claims submitted between an Oklahoma City specialty hospital and physician group. The agreement announced Wednesday resolves False Claims Act allegations covering Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare claims submitted by the Oklahoma Center for Orthopaedic and Multi-Specialty Surgery, its part-owner and management company, USP, Southwest Orthopaedic Specialists and two physicians. (Bannow, 7/8)

Ohio policymakers continue to scrutinize an academic affiliation between University of Toledo Medical Center and ProMedica, claiming that ProMedica has ulterior motives that will decimate the academic medical center. ProMedica and the University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences signed a 50-year academic affiliation agreement in 2015, which allowed UT students and residents to train at ProMedica as well as provide financial support to "ensure the long-term strength and expansion of educational and financial opportunities for the University's College of Medicine and Life Sciences," the university wrote in its 2019 earnings report. (Kacik, 7/9)