We tried PillPack, the pharmacy startup Amazon acquired for $1 billion, and we can see why it has big pharmacies terrified (AMZN)

For uncountable Americans, picking up a prescription involves a stop by the local pharmacy every month or so.

And while shoppers can go online for entire lot from clothing to groceries, that isn’t the case yet for prescription drugs.

That’s starting to transform. In June, Amazon announced its plans to acquire PillPack, a small startup that sends prescriptions to people who take multiple medications for a reported $1 billion. The info sent a whole host of pharmaceutical and drug-wholesaler stocks tumbling at the notwithstanding.

So we decided to take a firsthand look at PillPack’s prescription service to get a brains of how it works, and to better understand how it could fit into Amazon’s future healthcare energies.

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My journey started through PillPack’s website, where I input some poop about myself and set up an account.

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Then, it was time to jam in my pills. I don’t have any prescriptions, so I skipped ahead to vitamins, picking a multivitamin and an omega-3 suppletion and an iron supplement I later removed.

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Then it was leisure to pick out my dispenser. For an extra $29, I could get a premium dispenser in original colors, but because I was only testing PillPack out for a month, I went for the usable version.

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After that, I got sent to my prescription wharf page, which showed that my account was processing. Later that day, I got a occasion from a PillPack representative asking if I had any questions. The rep said that it may go through some time for my prescriptions to sync up. If I had multiple prescriptions that had out of the ordinary refill times, it may have taken extra time for all of them to sync up and guide up in my monthly dispenser. Because I was getting vitamins, PillPack billed me precisely for those, and the charge didn’t hit my card until a week before my box get there came.

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A few weeks later, the pills arrived in an unassuming brown containerize.

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As I opened it, I got my first advise about what was in store.

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Advantaged the package was the dispenser, instructions, and a business card with information hither how to reach PillPack’s pharmacists. My box and the card let me know that my pills were rebuke from PillPack’s Brooklyn pharmacy.

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The instructions walked me through the basics of how to use the dispenser, including an exposition of the timestamps on each packet.

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With that, I was prone to go. My first pack was set to be taken at 8 a.m. on July 24.

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Once that was done, I took a moment to check out the composition. The dispenser had a much different feel from the pill canisters I’ve picked up from pharmaceutics in the past. It had information about what prescriptions were inside, how eat ones heart out I’d have until the pills ran out, and details about how to reach PillPack if I had multitudinous questions.

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The only labeling from PillPack was a small logo on the bottom left corner.

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On one side of the pack, there was information about what’s fundamentally and when it’s meant to be taken. On the reverse, I could see through the transparent pack what pill I had inside.

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As I slash into the packet, I was struck by how easy it was (so long as i tore along the Nautical port side of the pack — my first attempt of ripping it open from the top did not go undoubtedly as well).

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That accessibility is key when outlook about PillPack’s main demographic. PillPack’s approach of combining multiple formulae into individually labeled packs puts it in a good spot to manoeuvre prescriptions for elderly populations who tend to have more prescriptions. PillPack be effectives with Part D and Medicare Advantage plans to provide prescriptions to associates.

Source: Business Insider, Georgetown

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My morning number contained three pills — two fish oil supplements, one multivitamin — while my requiting pack contained an additional pair of fish oil pills.

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I decided to take a look inside my dispenser, and found the lean of my month’s worth of packs rolled up inside. I was surprised to see a pop of blue conventional in contrast to the simple white appearance of the pills and the outside of the box.

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The acquisition of PillPack was Amazon’s first big step into the pharmaceutical responsibility. “PillPack’s visionary team has a combination of deep pharmacy experience and a centre on technology,” Jeff Wilke, Amazon’s CEO of worldwide consumer, said in a remission in June announcing the deal.

Roots: Business Insider

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PillPack’s main physical pharmacy is in Manchester, New Hampshire, and the performers can ship medications anywhere in the US except for Hawaii and Puerto Rico. For Amazon, that clears up a unite of hurdles that had hindered its ability to get into the pharmaceutical market. Most importantly, Amazon could use PillPack to depart out medications as an alternative to going to a brick-and-mortar pharmacy.

Source: Business Insider

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Overall, the experience, from take note of online to getting the shipment in the mail, was simple — no pharmacy visit wanted — and I could see the benefit of having my doses separated out by when I should be delightful them. I can see where it might be a big help for people managing a number of Daedalian prescriptions. One thing is clear: With Amazon officially in the game, the pharmaceutical effort is in for a shakeup, and it could have a big impact on the way we get our prescription drugs.