YORK, Pa. (WHTM) — WellSpan Health announced that they will be taking their pharmacy delivery to the skies soon.

The organization will be partnering with Zipline, an autonomous delivery service that uses drones, to transport prescriptions directly to patients’ homes and to move lab samples and medical products between facilities.

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Wellspan will be the first health service in the state of Pennsylvania that will introduce this type of technology and delivery system.

“WellSpan continues to reimagine what healthcare can look like for our patients. With Zipline, we’re creating a future for our patients where getting a prescription filled is as simple as pressing a button. We’re making our system lower cost, faster, and more sustainable by bringing this exceptional technology to South Central Pennsylvania,” said Roxanna Gapstur, Ph.D., R.N., president and CEO, of WellSpan Health. “We know the easier it is to access care, the healthier people can be. With Zipline, we’re connecting healthcare straight to your front door.”

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The partnership will use the company’s Platform 2 home delivery system which is known for its fast, precise deliveries and quiet operations. The system uses all-electric autonomous drones to fly to destinations and hover safely in the sky. Its autonomous delivery droid descends on a tether, turns to the correct location, and gently drops off its package to an area as small as a patio table or the front steps of a home.

“What we’re trying to do is to bring services to the patient where they are, rather than expect the patient to come to where we are. So it’s a flip in the way that we deliver care. So if you get your medications right now, 99% of them, I’m sure you are going to a retail pharmacy to go and pick them up. But what if you didn’t need to do that? (What if you are) a parent and you have a sick child at home and you don’t want to have to run out to the pharmacy? If you could order the prescription online or an over-the-counter medication online and have it delivered to your home reliably at a specific time, you would probably take that,” Keith Knoll, Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at WellSpan Health said.

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The system allows patients to track their deliveries down to the second. Zipline flies in all conditions, from snow to thunderstorms.

Zipline has been improving access to healthcare for eight years. Together with WellSpan Health, we will bring prescriptions and medical products right to patients’ doorsteps with fast, sustainable, and convenient delivery,” said Keller Rinaudo Cliffton, Co-Founder and CEO of Zipline.

Over the coming years, WellSpan Health has said they will integrate Zipline’s service at select facilities and will be sharing more information on how patients can sign up to use the service. More information can be found here.

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