Amazon is now delivering prescription medications via drones to customers in some markets, including a city in Texas.
The e-commerce giant announced on October 18 that customers in College Station who order from Amazon Pharmacy can have their prescription medications delivered to their doors by way of the company’s drone delivery service.
Amazon Pharmacy was started in 2020 to provide ease of access to potentially lifesaving medication while providing ways to keep drug prices low.
“For decades, the customer experience has been to drive to a pharmacy with limited operating hours, stand in line, and have a public conversation about your health situation, or to wait five-to-10 days for traditional mail-order delivery,” said John Love, vice president of Amazon Pharmacy, according to a news release. “With Amazon Pharmacy, you can quickly get the medications you need — whether by drone or standard delivery — without having to miss soccer practice or leave work early.”
Amazon promises to deliver the medicine with no delivery fee within an hour of ordering.
“Our drones fly over traffic, eliminating the excess time a customer’s package might spend in transit on the road,” said Calsee Hendrickson, director of product and program management at Prime Air. “That’s the beauty of drone delivery, and medications were the first thing our customers said they also want delivered quickly via drone. Speed and convenience top the wish list for health purchases.”
Dr. Vin Gupta, chief medical officer of Amazon Pharmacy, said the new delivery service will help decrease the time between when a patient first feels unwell and treatment, known as the “golden window.”
“We’re working hard at Amazon to dramatically narrow the golden window from diagnosis to treatment, and drone delivery marks a significant step forward,” said Gupta, per the news release. “Whether it’s an infectious disease or respiratory illness, early intervention can be critical to improving patient outcomes.”
Amazon has increasingly been making use of drones to deliver goods to customers. The online retailer announced in July 2022 that College Station in Central Texas would be among the first cities to receive Amazon Prime drone deliveries in the United States alongside Lockeford, California, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.