Amazon $AMZN Pharmacy will stock and deliver Eli Lilly $LLY‘s newly approved oral weight-loss pill Foundayo, offering same-day delivery in nearly 3,000 cities and towns, the company said. Customers with a valid prescription can also pick up the medication within minutes at kiosks inside select One Medical locations following a medical appointment.
With insurance, Foundayo is priced as low as $1 per day, or $25 per m onth, according to Amazon. Cash-pay customers pay $5 per day, or $149 per month. Manufacturer-sponsored coupons are applied automatically at checkout.
Tanvi Patel, Vice President and General Manager of Amazon Pharmacy, told Reuters that Amazon expects same-day coverage to reach roughly 4,500 locations before 2027. In rural areas where a physical pharmacy may be more than an hour’s drive away, the company said it will offer next-day, two-day, and three-day delivery — options it said are faster than standard mail-order services.
The oral pill’s tolerance for ambient temperatures is precisely what opens the door to kiosk availability, according to Patel. Injectable GLP-1 drugs are absent from the kiosks, Patel explained, because they must be kept cold — a constraint that has applied since Amazon Pharmacy first began dispensing GLP-1 medications four years ago. Rollout beyond California is possible, Patel said, though placement in other clinics or provider settings will depend on what individual state regulations permit.
Patel said that same-day delivery is also available for patients who get prescriptions through Lilly’s third-party partners, such as WeightWatchers. Amazon also acts as the dispensing pharmacy for LillyDirect, Lilly’s consumer platform.
Foundayo, whose generic name is orforglipron, received FDA approval as a once-daily tablet that can be taken at any time of day without food or water restrictions. It is indicated for adults with obesity or overweight with weight-related medical conditions. Phase 3 trial data showed patients on the highest dose lost an average of 12.4% of their starting body weight over 72 weeks.
The pill enters a market where Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy pill is already established. Amazon has stocked Wegovy at its One Medical kiosks since January, Reuters reported. The two pills are priced identically for uninsured patients at $149 per month for the lowest dose, though a cross-trial comparison published by Novo Nordisk claimed its drug produced greater weight loss and fewer dropouts due to side effects. Lilly has highlighted Foundayo’s lack of dosing restrictions — the Wegovy pill must be taken first thing in the morning on an empty stomach — as a competitive advantage.
Amazon Pharmacy has delivered GLP-1 medications since 2021. The company said customers have saved more than $200 million through its automatic coupon program, with GLP-1 medications representing the largest savings category.
