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Key takeaways
Pharmacy delivery is a convenient service offered by many drugstores, allowing patients to receive medications directly at their homes, enhancing safety, confidentiality, and adherence to medication schedules.
Despite the convenience, pharmacy delivery can include drawbacks such as delivery fees, potential delays, and reduced direct interaction with pharmacists, which may affect individuals relying on immediate access or personal advice.
Major pharmacies like Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, and Walmart offer prescription delivery services, with policies and capabilities varying by location, including options for express delivery and adding non-prescription items to orders.
Pharmacy delivery services differ from mail-order pharmacies primarily in their operation, with the former being offered by retail chains and including potential for faster delivery and sometimes free services, while the latter typically offers larger refill quantities and can handle controlled substances and specialty medications.
Now more than ever in the wake of COVID-19, getting your prescriptions delivered safely to your home is an essential part of staying healthy. Some drugstores offer pharmacy delivery services that make it easy to get the medications you need mailed directly to you. Whether you’re unable to travel in-person to a pharmacy because of social distancing, illness, or for other reasons, pharmacy delivery may be the right option for you. Let’s take a more in-depth look at what pharmacy delivery is and how it works.
What is pharmacy delivery?
Pharmacy delivery is the process of getting your prescriptions mailed to you directly from the pharmacy you use to fill your prescriptions. Instead of having to physically drive to a pharmacy location, pharmacy delivery makes it convenient to get your prescriptions without having to wait in line or drive out of your way. Here are some benefits of pharmacy delivery:
Pros
- Convenience: The most appealing thing about pharmacy delivery is that they save people time. Instead of having to wait in line for hours, you can have your medications delivered straight to your home. Most pharmacies allow advance payment and automatic refills.
- Safety: Getting your medications delivered straight to your home is the safest option, especially during COVID-19. It allows people with illnesses or disabilities to remain in the safety and comfort of their home instead of having to make extra trips to a physical drugstore.
- Confidentiality: Pharmacy delivery services are also safe to use in terms of patient confidentiality. Patients can use their own secure pharmacy profiles to place their order, which ensures the privacy of every individual. Pharmacy delivery is also a discrete way to refill prescriptions that you’re uncomfortable talking about in-person.
- Consistency: In the United States, an estimated 30% to 50% of medications aren’t taken as prescribed, which may be because it can be difficult to remember or find time to go to the pharmacy when it’s time for a refill. Pharmacy delivery services may help improve medication adherence because they take those steps out of the process.
Cons
Even though pharmacy delivery is a great option for some people, it does have a few downsides to be aware of.
- Delivery fees: Many pharmacies will charge a delivery fee that will increase your total price at checkout. While the delivery fee may be about $5, this can add up, and for some people this may not be doable.
- Mail order delays: Receiving your medications in the mail can also take longer than picking them up in person. If you need your medication right away, it may be a better option to stop by a physical pharmacy because it could take several days for your medication to come in the mail.
- Pharmacist interactions: By choosing to have your medications delivered instead of going to pick them up, you also lose the ability to interact with your pharmacist face-to-face. While it’s certainly possible to call your pharmacist on the phone and have them answer questions you may have, some people may miss being able to directly talk with their pharmacist about their medications, especially if they’re starting a new prescription.
Which pharmacies offer prescription delivery services?
Most major pharmacies offer home delivery services, so there’s a high probability that there’s a pharmacy near you that will be able to deliver your prescriptions safely to your home. Some of the most well-known pharmacies that do home delivery are Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, and Walmart.
These pharmacies may have slightly different policies regarding home delivery. For example, not all Rite Aid locations offer home delivery. Delivery times may also vary. Walgreens offers express delivery, which could get your packages to you as early as one to two business days via FedEx. CVS Pharmacy even allows customers to add non-prescription items to their order besides their prescription medications. It’s always a good idea to do your research and call the pharmacy you’re interested in using to make sure you fully understand their prescription delivery services.
Mail order pharmacies vs. pharmacy delivery services
Pharmacy delivery services are similar in nature to mail order pharmacies, but they differ slightly and it’s important to know in what way. With pharmacy delivery services, a doctor will call in a prescription to a local pharmacy. The prescription is then filled by a pharmacist who processes the customer’s insurance information and then either gives them their prescription directly or mails it to them.
Mail order pharmacies are a little different. “The term ‘mail order pharmacy’ typically means a pharmacy that is owned by a large pharmacy benefits manager who will offer these services on behalf of their health plan clients,” says Jason Reed, Pharm.D., a pharmacist at Atrium Medical Center in Ohio. “The benefit is offering longer day supplies (although 90-day supplies at retail pharmacies are more common now) and lower copays for members,” says Dr. Reed.
“Pharmacy delivery services have started to pop up so that regular retail pharmacies can compete with the service and convenience of having medication delivery to the home. The major retail chains and many independent pharmacies will now offer delivery services to their patients, sometimes even for free. Another component of pharmacy delivery services are companies such as Uber and Lyft that will get prescriptions from a retail pharmacy and deliver it to the patient. Keep in mind, there will be fees for this type of service,” says Dr. Reed.
Pharmacies that offer delivery services don’t typically offer the same 90-day supply of medications that mail-order pharmacies do, and they tend to be a little bit more expensive. Another difference between the two is that mail order pharmacies can deliver controlled substances and specialty medications that require refrigeration, which most pharmacy delivery programs can’t do.
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Is pharmacy delivery covered by insurance?
Whether or not you’re able to get insurance coverage for pharmacy delivery costs will depend on what type of health insurance plan you have. Some insurance plans will offer partial coverage for prescriptions delivered by mail, and some may not offer coverage at all. Even if your insurance covers your prescriptions for in-store pickup, you still might have to pay delivery fees if you want those same prescriptions mailed to you. Delivery fees vary by pharmacy.
How do I get my prescriptions delivered?
If you’re interested in getting a discount on your prescription and getting it delivered to your doorstep for free. You can use SingleCare coupons with Capsule.
If you have any questions about pharmacy delivery or about how to get a SingleCare discount card, we’re here to help. Call us at 844-234-3057 or find us on Facebook.
