Utilization of Prescription Acquisition by Drive-Thru and Mail Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States

OBJECTIVES: The study compared the utilization of prescription acquisition by drive-thru and mail before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and investigated the factors that influenced the utilization of the services.

METHODS: Cross-sectional data on respondents’ prescription acquisition by drive-thru and mail were obtained from the 2015 (n = 26173) and 2021 (n = 1521) National Consumer Surveys on Medication Experience and Pharmacists’ Role (NCSME&PR). Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses were used to explain utilization differences between the two samples by demographic characteristics.

RESULTS: The proportion of respondents who used drive-thru services to acquire prescriptions before the pandemic was 35% and 42% during the pandemic. Only 17% used the mail before the pandemic, while 29% used it during the pandemic. The odds of utilizing drive-thru services during the pandemic were significantly higher for respondents who were married (1.43), had a university degree or higher (1.75), had a household income of at least $80,000 (1.55), resided in the South (1.63) or Midwest (1.38), or had a professional relationship with a pharmacist (1.64). The odds of acquiring prescriptions through mail delivery during the pandemic were significantly higher for respondents 65 years of age or older (1.36), married (1.86), had a university degree or higher (2.91), made at least $80,000 per year in household income (2.25), and used a clinic pharmacy (2.86).

CONCLUSIONS: Prescription acquisition by drive-thru and mail during the pandemic was explainable by factors such as relationship with a pharmacist, pharmacy type, age group, geographical region, marital status, higher education, and household income. These findings highlight the benefits of promoting prescription delivery services to various demographics and considerations in order to enhance equitable medication accessibility and address population needs while maintaining safety during a pandemic. Meanwhile, future research is required to evaluate the utilization of these services after the COVID-19 pandemic.