Buying medicines has got a lot easier, thanks to the advent of e-pharmacies.
Stiff competition from e-pharmacies has led brick-and-mortar pharmacies to offer services such as home delivery at no additional cost. Also, many physical pharmacies offer to procure drugs or brands on demand, in order to woo and retain customers. This is a significant change from the earlier times. Further, the government’s attempt to get doctors to prescribe the generic name of drugs instead of just drug brands will also go a long way in empowering customers.
Price
E-pharmacies typically offer discounts of 10-40%. This varies across products. Many pharmacies offer lower discounts on nutritional products and higher ones for prescription drugs.
While e-pharmacies score over the neighbourhood drug store on convenience and pricing, the time taken to deliver is still a challenge. Efforts are on to solve this, but logistical constraints prevail.
However, for those who are under regular medication and can plan their purchases ahead, online pharmacies may offer a good bargain. There are three e-pharmacy models currently in vogue.
The first model is online-only stores. All you need to do here is log into the portal and place an order for the medicine you need. The same is delivered home by the e-pharmacy. Offerings such as Netmeds, 1mg, mChemist, Medlife and PharmEasy are in this category.
In the second model, pharmacy chains such as MedPlus encourage online booking by offering discounts. For instance, the average discount on prescription drugs when you visit a physical store is 10% (for purchases of up to ₹1,000). However, if you order online, you can get up to 20% discount on the maximum price.
Finally, there are those such as Vpharmacist, who help you choose the medicines you require and place an order online. The order is then passed on to a pharmacist located close to the customer’s home. The medicines are delivered home and the customer can make the payment upon delivery.
(The writer is an independent financial consultant)