Cleveland Clinic partners with Zipline to deliver prescriptions by drone in Ohio

Cleveland Clinic launched a new prescription-delivery initiative that employs Zipline’s autonomous drones to transport eligible, shelf-stable medications to patients’ yards around Beachwood, Ohio. The service, limited to addresses within five miles of the clinic’s Beachwood Administrative Campus, is offered to patients already using the clinic’s pharmacy home-delivery program and is provided at no additional cost. After a pharmacy technician places the sealed order in a Zipline drop box, a drone retrieves it, flies to the destination, and lowers a small pod on a tether from as high as 300 feet, depositing the package without landing.

Flights usually take less than five minutes, and patients can track the delivery via the MyChart portal. Controlled substances are not shipped by drone, and Zipline’s system does not record the contents of the packages, relying on onboard sensors and fleet-level monitoring for safety. If adverse weather blocks a flight, the clinic will revert to ground courier delivery. The program aims to expand to other medications, lab samples, and possibly medical meals in the future.