NHS recommended repeat prescription app Healthera has partnered with Uber Direct to enable the express delivery of prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines to customers and patients across the UK.
Covering more than 1,500 local pharmacies, the Healthera app enables its 750,000 users to order prescriptions, everyday medicines and health products online. Delivery via Uber Direct will now allow people to access those products, often within an hour – and track their delivery in real-time.
This partnership is designed to support the UK government’s Pharmacy First initiative, which will give local pharmacies greater power to provide patients with prescription-only medication for common medical conditions, without them needing to see a GP.
Quintus Liu, CEO and founder of Healthera, said: “Healthera wants to provide the practical solutions that will help local pharmacies provide the best possible service to their community. Our partnership with Uber Direct is now adding a best-of-class delivery infrastructure that will enable them to offer customers and patients greater delivery speed, reliability and convenience.”
Recent consumer research, commissioned by Uber, has shown that there is also a demand for this type of express delivery. The study found that 77% of people want pharmacies to provide them with access to on-demand delivery for over-the-counter medicine – and 74% said the same for prescriptions. The Uber Direct partnership is now providing that level of convenience to users of the Healthera app.
Uber Direct, which is powered by the same technology and courier network as the Uber Eats online marketplace, can deliver products either on-demand or accurately within a chosen time slot (60 minute window) to almost all of the UK, both in urban and rural regions.
Caroline Varga, head of Uber Direct UK&I, said: “This partnership is making vital health products and medicines more accessible for people across the length and breadth of the country. It’s a collaboration that will help pharmacies to better support customers and patients in their local area and grow as a business.”
This latest partnership is not the first collaboration between Uber and a pharmacy, it expanded its relationship with Boots in October 2022. It also works with natural beauty retailer The Body Shop, as well as a host of supermarkets including Asda, Co-op, Iceland and Waitrose.
We deliver!
Our editor picks some choice pieces from the analysis flow and sends them to your inbox every Wednesday. Dedicated research report previews will also come direct to you. Subscribe for the emails.
Why not join us on Linkedin and you’ll get the best updates on our research and analysis – UK, Europe and Global – in your feed.
