Amazon Pharmacy is rolling out kiosks stocked with prescription medications to help patients get their meds immediately after appointments.
The kiosks will launch across One Medical locations in Los Angeles starting December 2025. Expansion to additional One Medical offices is expected soon after. The kiosks will contain commonly prescribed meds like antibiotics, inhalers and blood pressure medications. Controlled substances and medications requiring refrigeration are not available.
The journey from the doctor’s office to the pharmacy counter is filled with challenging logistics and potential frustration. More than a quarter of prescriptions go unfilled annually due to cost, and up to half of medications for chronic conditions are not taken as prescribed.
Compounding the problem, a quarter of U.S. neighborhoods are considered pharmacy deserts, by some estimates. These are missed opportunities for a better experience, better outcomes and reduced costs, Amazon executives say.
“It’s an incredibly satisfactory experience. Taking our Amazon playbook, we see a way to improve on all those things,” Hannah McClellan, vice president of operations at Amazon Pharmacy, told Fierce Healthcare. “What we’re doing is starting from the customer and working backwards.”
Amazon Pharmacy already offers free home delivery for Prime members, recently publishing findings in JAMA Network that home delivery is correlated with increased medication refills and reduced out-of-pocket costs.
By the end of 2025, about half of Prime members will have delivery available in less than 24 hours, McClellan said, though in some major cities customers can get their meds in as little as two to four hours. The kiosks are an extension of that approach, but aim to be even quicker.
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When writing a prescription, One Medical doctors can see if a given drug is available in the kiosk. Then, patients can choose to have it sent to Amazon Pharmacy for in-office kiosk pickup. After checking out in the Amazon app, patients will get a QR code to scan at the kiosk for pickup. Medications will typically be ready in minutes, according to Amazon.
A key part of Amazon Pharmacy is showing upfront costs to patients. Through the Amazon app, patients can view their estimated insurance copays, available discounts, and the out-of-pocket cost of a prescription. Amazon Pharmacy does this on the back end by running a check with a patient’s insurance, just as any in-person pharmacy would.
“We’re just doing it before you’ve gone out of your way to drive to a pharmacy,” McClellan said.
When patients abandon prescriptions for whatever reason, they often don’t communicate this back to their providers, who remain in the dark about the prescription challenges they face.
“To be able to have that conversation face to face in the provider’s office … is pretty game changing for the industry,” McClellan said.
In response to the news, Forrester Principal Analyst Arielle Trzcinski commented, "Consumers still care about convenience in their pharmacy experience...Colocation can address a litany of challenges." Trzcinski cited Forrester data showing that if all pharmacies accepted the same insurance and charged the same for a prescription, location is the most important factor to consumers (51%), followed by the speed of a prescription fill (46%).
To remain compliant with regulations, Amazon pharmacists will review medications within the kiosk remotely through cameras inside the machines. Pharmacists will also be available to speak live to patients via the kiosks and within the app. The kiosk can print instructions, similar to an actual pharmacy counter.
Each kiosk—which can fit hundreds of medications—is tamper-resistant, weighing nearly 1 ton, and is secured to the floor. It features vibration sensors, surveillance cameras with motion detection alerts and dual authentication requirements for medication dispensing. Patient information is protected in accordance with HIPAA.
There is no additional fee to use an Amazon Pharmacy kiosk for Prime and non-Prime members. Patients pay like they normally would for their prescriptions. Amazon Pharmacy accepts all major payers, McClellan said, and automatically applies manufacturer coupons. It also has negotiated discounts for cash-pay customers. Anyone can make a One Medical appointment online through Amazon.