Walmart expands same-day pharmacy delivery to 49 states

Walmart is rolling out Same-Day Pharmacy Delivery to customers in 49 states. 

Same-Day Pharmacy Delivery, one of Walmart’s most expansive technology undertakings, is a tech-powered store-to-door service using a combination of in-store and cloud-based technology platforms, AI capabilities and a new geospatial platform.

“Launched in six states in October, Pharmacy Delivery brings together what only Walmart can do at this scale—an extensive nationwide presence coupled with profound expertise in pharmacy and store deliveries—to power an Adaptive Retail experience that brings medications to customers exactly the way they want and need,” Walmart said, noting that Pharmacy Delivery is people-led by more than 15,000 pharmacists across the country who are helping to give customers more convenient access to care through the dispensing and delivery of prescriptions and medication refills, with a few select exceptions.

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Walmart said that its pharmacy customers informed the retailer that they tend to shop for other items and needs across the store when getting their prescriptions in stores. “This service offers game-changing convenience for Walmart customers and Walmart+ members who may be stretched for time or want to shop from the comfort of their homes,” the company said.

“In response, hundreds of associates from dozens of technology teams collaborated to seamlessly connect pharmacy systems to e-commerce, scheduling and delivery systems, while ensuring HIPAA compliance and protecting customer privacy.," the company said. 

"This intricate network is connected to Walmart’s AI-powered delivery platform, Spark. Additionally, the platform uses new geospatial technology to define delivery catchments (areas) with greater precision. These catchments are customized for each store using customer insights and external data—an approach that far outperforms traditional metrics such as zip code or distance from the store. This technology recently powered the expansion of regular delivery to 12M more households and is now enabling Walmart to extend this new offering to even more customers.”

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Once a pharmacist fills a customer’s prescription, the customer is notified through their Walmart.com account that their order is ready to be delivered. At this time, they can select the delivery that works best for them – Same-Day Scheduled, On-Demand or Express. New or existing insurance plans will be applied to the transaction just as they would when picking up a prescription in-store. 

“A driver will safely and securely bring the order to the customer’s location during their preferred time window. Medications are delivered in tamper-evident packaging and customers can track their orders in real-time," Walmart said.

Walmart said that Walmart+ members will receive free Pharmacy Delivery as a member benefit, while those customers who are not yet Walmart+ members will be charged based on delivery preference.