Amazon unveiled a new pharmaceutical service for US Prime members. Via Amazon's RxPass, customers may now get free home delivery of all their approved generic medications for $5 a month!
Named as RxPass, this program was announced on Tuesday, Jan. 24, with the hopes of increasing membership and attracting new customers, CNBC reported.
$5 Prescription Subscription
RxPass is an optional feature that will provide Prime members unlimited access to 50 generic prescriptions used to treat more than 80 prevalent chronic diseases. These health conditions include hypertension, anxiety, and diabetes.
A monthly subscription to the service costs $5 per member, with free shipping.
However, neither Medicaid nor Medicare participants are eligible to use RxPass, and the service does not provide insulin or other specialized drugs.
When asked whether Amazon has plans to increase the number of drugs available via RxPass, chief medical officer Vin Gupta declined to answer.
He estimated 150 million individuals use at least one prescription drug that RxPass initially covers.
Amazon in the Healthcare Sector
In the last several years, Amazon has made significant expansions in the healthcare sector.
Due to its 2018 purchase of PillPack, the firm was able to begin developing its own online pharmacy by 2020.
Amazon also launched a telemedicine program named Amazon Care, shut it down, and announced in July 2022 that it would purchase a small primary care clinic called One Medical.
Moreover, discounts of up to 80% off generic pharmaceuticals and up to 40% off brand-name medications are available via Amazon's Prime Prescription Savings perk.
Online pharmacies such as CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart all pose a threat to the e-commerce giant.
Amazon has been silent about the success of its recently introduced online pharmacy. According to Business Insider, a Morgan Stanley analysis from August 2022 indicated that, based on a poll of users, Prime members did not consider Amazon Pharmacy to be a major benefit.
Amazon's Vin Gupta has said that the company's goal is to provide customers with a pharmacy service that is "fundamentally different" from the way pharmacies have operated for the last several decades.
In an interview, Gupta remarked, "This is still day one for us where we're at our beginning stages here, but we recognize that change is needed." He added that this is what doctors and patients all throughout the nation have been telling the firm, and Amazon is now acting on it.
Amid the Layoffs
Prime members of Amazon will soon enjoy even more benefits than before, despite CEO Andy Jassy's efforts to reduce spending in other areas. With the hiring freeze and the cancellation of several projects, Amazon has plans to cut off over 18,000 employees.
Nevertheless, Jassy has said that Amazon would continue looking for long-term prospects, such as those in the healthcare sector.
