Walgreens' Hippocratic Oath

With job losses in the U.S. hitting record numbers, retailers are trying to entice jittery consumers to spend by offering to let them return everything from plane tickets to cars should they get laid off down the road. Now Walgreens' in-store clinics are promising free health care this year--for ailments like strep throat--to patients (and their families) who lose their jobs after March 31 and have no insurance.

Restrictions apply, of course. For starters, wellness visits aren't covered. But it's a smart way to drum up business among the still employed. All a family has to do to be eligible for this safety-net program is to have used a Walgreens' Take Care clinic since the in-store chain opened in 2005. Average out-of-pocket cost: $50 to $80.