Current:Home > BackAmazon is testing drones to deliver your medications in an hour or less-InfoLens
Amazon is testing drones to deliver your medications in an hour or less
View Date:2024-12-23 12:34:23
Amazon is testing a service that will drop its pharmacy patients' medications on their doorsteps via drone in an hour or less.
It is piloting the drone delivery service with customers in College Station, Texas, the company said Wednesday. Deliveries from Amazon Pharmacy are made within 60 minutes of a patient placing an order, at no extra cost.
Customers can have more than 500 medications to treat conditions like flu, asthma and pneumonia delivered.
The aim is to get patients' ailments treated as quickly as possible to deliver better medical care.
"We're taught from the first days of medical school that there is a golden window that matters in clinical medicine," Amazon Pharmacy chief medical officer Dr. Vin Gupta said in a statement Wednesday. "That's the time between when a patient feels unwell and when they're able to get treatment."
The drone delivery is aimed at narrowing that window, Gupta added.
Drones can be speedy because they don't have to contend with vehicular traffic.
"Our drones fly over traffic, eliminating the excess time a customer's package might spend in transit on the road," said Calsee Hendrickson, director of product and program management at Prime Air. "That's the beauty of drone delivery, and medications were the first thing our customers said they also want delivered quickly via drone. Speed and convenience top the wish list for health purchases."
The drones fly at least 40 meters high and have built-in sensors that allow them to navigate around obstacles in the air.
When they arrive at a customer's home, the drones rely on cameras to detect people and pets as well as objects before they release their packages.
Customers can retrieve their meds without interacting with the drones, the company added.
Amazon has already tested drone delivery with other items, safely delivering hundreds of non-pharmaceutical goods within College Station over the past year.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Arkansas governor unveils $102 million plan to update state employee pay plan
- Camp Lejeune Marine dies during training exercise, prompting investigation
- Man City beats Chelsea with late Silva goal to make FA Cup final while Arsenal tops EPL
- 'Pulp Fiction' 30th anniversary reunion: John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, more
- A $1 billion proposal is the latest plan to refurbish and save the iconic Houston Astrodome
- The U.S. Olympic wrestling trials are underway: TV schedule, time and how to watch
- NBA playoff games today: How to watch, predictions for Game 1s on Saturday
- Tennessee schools would have to out transgender students to parents under bill heading to governor
- Armie Hammer Says His Mom Gifted Him a Vasectomy for His 38th Birthday
- Former Red Sox Player Dave McCarty Dead at 54
Ranking
- Lululemon, Disney partner for 34-piece collection and campaign: 'A dream collaboration'
- Average 30-year fixed mortgage rates continue to climb as inflation persists, analysts say
- White Green: Emerging Star in Macro Strategic Investment
- Nacho fries return to Taco Bell for longest run yet with new Secret Aardvark sauce
- New Pentagon report on UFOs includes hundreds of new incidents but no evidence of aliens
- NHL playoffs schedule today: Times, TV for Islanders vs. Hurricanes, Maple Leafs vs. Bruins
- Police to review security outside courthouse hosting Trump’s trial after man sets himself on fire
- Why FedEx's $25 million NIL push is 'massive step forward' for Memphis Tigers sports
Recommendation
-
Opinion: Chris Wallace leaves CNN to go 'where the action' is. Why it matters
-
South Africa man convicted in deaths of 2 Alaska Native women faces revocation of U.S. citizenship
-
New York lawmakers pass $237 billion budget addressing housing construction and migrants
-
Run to Lululemon's We Made Too Much to Get a $106 Dress for $39, $58 Bra for $24 & More
-
Japan to resume V-22 flights after inquiry finds pilot error caused accident
-
Beyoncé's 'II Hands II Heaven': Drea Kelly says her viral dance now has 'a life of its own'
-
What is cloud seeding and did it play any role in the Dubai floods?
-
Extinct snake that measured up to 50 feet long discovered in India