Zipline and Magellan RX to Deliver Medications to Homes Via Drone

Instant logistics leader Zipline has announced a partnership with Magellan Rx Management, the full-service pharmacy benefits management division of Magellan Health, Inc., for the delivery of prescription medications, which will include specialty medications for the treatment of chronic, complex conditions, directly to patients’ homes by drone. Magellan Rx Management is just the latest among a growing number of organizations that are partnering with Zipline worldwide.

Zipline designs, manufactures and operates the world’s largest automated on-demand delivery service, which has completed over 235,000 commercial deliveries so far, with a delivery made once every four minutes on average. Magellan Rx will be the first pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) to deliver specialty and traditional medications through Zipline. This option will first be made available to Magellan Rx members in the North Carolina service area and will offer a re-imagined consumer-focused approach to serving healthcare patients.

Magellan Rx plans to initiate operations this year, after it receives approvals from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It will carry out operations from Zipline’s existing distribution center in Kannapolis, North Carolina, which is able to serve customers within 7,800 square miles. Zipline’s automated on-demand delivery service enables healthcare organizations and patients to receive their required medications in as little as fifteen minutes.

“The team at Magellan Rx Management is thrilled to collaborate with Zipline and be the first PBM to deliver specialty and traditional medications via drone,” said Mostafa Kamal, CEO at Magellan Rx Management. “For us, it is about challenging the status quo, and leveraging cutting edge technology to reimagine the ways in which we can improve access, care, and quality for individuals with complex and rare conditions who are often challenged with additional hurdles on their healthcare journey. Reliable, on-demand deliveries with Zipline help us advance our existing consumer-centric approach where patients can get the critical medications they need delivered, on their time, when they need them, right to their own homes.”

“Instant logistics can transform health outcomes for those that need it most,” said Zipline founder and CEO Keller Rinaudo. “With Magellan Rx Management, we’re working to reimagine the patient experience, bring care closer to home, and ultimately help patients treat and manage chronic and complex health conditions.”

Read more about Zipline: U.S. Secretary of State award for Corporate Excellence, work with Walmart, medical drone delivery in Utah, and new funding.

Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.