The Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a revised policy statement that said children should not get their primary medical care from retail outlets.
Retail clinics started appearing in grocery stores and drug store chains in 2000, Reuters reported. By 2012 there were over 6,000 locations in the U.S.
Walgreens and CVS representative said the chains (which often have retail clinics) agree with the AAP guidelines.
"We strongly encourage all patients to have a relationship with a primary care physician and medical home for ongoing medical needs and routine exams," Walgreens spokesman Jim Cohn told Reuters Health.
The clinics are a cause of concern because seeing different physicians can "fragment" care; this could cause a problem to be missed such as chronic ear infections.
The purpose of the clinics is to fill in when a child's physician is unavailable.
"They are a more convenient option for parents with sick children rather than the alternative, which is often waiting for an appointment while the child is sick or spending hours in a high-cost emergency room for a minor pediatric complaint," Tine Hansen-Turton, executive director of the Convenience Care Association told USA Today.
The AAP Committee on Practice and Ambulatory Medicine also raised concerns that retail clinics may fail to follow up on tests, Reuters. The committee also said the clinics could have "cleanliness or public health issues" due to sick individuals gathering in a public place.
Retail clinics do serve their purpose: "Healthcare Clinics can play an important role in improving access and bridging critical gaps in care in today's health care environment," Cohn told Reuters.
"We strongly support the medical home," Doctor Andrew J. Sussman, president of MinuteClinic and senior vice president/associate chief medical officer at CVS Caremark, told Reuters. "We sometimes see kids who do not have pediatric medical homes and we give parents a list of nearby pediatricians."
