**The big picture:** Walmart is significantly enhancing its employee benefits package for 2027, introducing no-cost coverage for over 250 prescription drugs, expanded specialist care access, and increased neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) leave. **Why it matters:** This move by the largest private employer in the U.S. sets a new benchmark for corporate benefits, influencing retention strategies and healthcare coverage decisions across the retail and logistics sectors. **Between the lines:** - Walmart will cover certain GLP-1 medications (Ozempic, Mounjaro) for Type 2 diabetes, but not for weight loss, requiring prior authorization. - Specialist care for serious conditions will expand through partnerships with Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic. - New parents will receive up to 12 weeks of paid NICU leave, stackable with existing parental leave. **Staffing & HR impact:** These enhanced benefits are a direct investment in employee retention, aiming to reduce costly turnover in a competitive labor market and potentially influencing other large employers' benefits offerings. The strategic exclusion of weight-loss GLP-1 coverage highlights a nuanced approach to managing healthcare costs while still attracting and retaining talent. **The bottom line:** Walmart's proactive benefits overhaul signals a long-term strategy to stabilize its workforce and manage healthcare expenditures, offering a blueprint for other companies navigating similar challenges.