While drugstores in the US are struggling, Amazon has plans for 20 new pharmacies next year.
In a cost-cutting move, Walgreens said earlier this month it would close 1,200 stores over the next three years.
Rite Aid, meanwhile, has closed hundreds of brick-and-mortar locations across the country after filing for bankruptcy in October 2023, leaving thousands of customers without a local pharmacy to pick up essential medications.
However, Amazon is taking a different approach than the traditional drugstore, introducing a digital-first pharmacy that delivers to customers’ doors, much like its e-commerce site.
Customers in 20 new locations, including Boston, Dallas, Minneapolis, Philadelphia and San Diego, will be able to get free, fast delivery of prescription medicines by 2025, the company said announced.
While drugstores in the US are struggling, Amazon has plans for 20 new pharmacies next year
“Amazon is leveraging its extensive logistics network and advanced automation technology to solve one of pharmacy’s biggest pain points: the lack of convenient, affordable access to medications,” the company said in a statement.
The new pharmacies will be embedded into Amazon’s Same-Day Delivery sites and customers will also have 24/7 access to a pharmacist.
The company predicts that by the end of 2025, 45 percent of U.S. customers will be eligible for same-day delivery of their prescription medications.
In most cases, this means a customer can order medications before 4 p.m. and receive them at home before 10 p.m., Amazon said.
The acceleration of Amazon Pharmacy, which launched in 2020, comes as companies like CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens have announced mass closures and layoffs of employees.
Walgreens’ latest store closure announcement earlier this month means that by 2027, one in seven Walgreens will have closed its doors.
The move is part of new CEO Tim Wentworth’s attempt to turn around the struggling pharmacy chain.
Rite Aid closed hundreds of physical locations across the country after filing for bankruptcy in October 2023
The new pharmacies will be embedded into Amazon’s Same-Day Delivery sites and customers will also have 24/7 access to a pharmacist
The acceleration of Amazon Pharmacy, which launched in 2020, comes as companies like CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens have announced mass closures and layoffs of employees
Experts blame the increasing popularity of online drug services and financial problems for many closures of brick-and-mortar operations.
Chains have been battered by falling prescription reimbursements, rising costs, persistent theft and consumers switching to online retailers or cheaper competitors.
Amazon Pharmacy said it is offering a solution to the growing prevalence of “pharmacy deserts” in the US.
A recent one study found that nearly half of U.S. counties have communities more than 10 miles from the nearest pharmacy, and traditional mail-order prescriptions can take up to 10 days to arrive.
“We’re reimagining healthcare to meet customers where they are: online, on the go and at home,” John Love, vice president of Amazon Pharmacy, said in a statement.