Walmart will try drone deliveries of at-home coronavirus testsSeptember 23, 2020 - 14:46 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Walmart will test drone delivery of “at home Covid-19 self-collection kits” made by Quest Diagnostics as the pandemic rages on and the retailer looks for new contactless ways to reach customers, Forbes reports. Walmart on Tuesday, September 22 said it has partnered with Quest and the drone services provider DroneUp to launch pilot deliveries of collection kits in North Las Vegas Tuesday and Cheektowaga, N.Y. beginning early next month. Financial terms of the partnership weren’t disclosed. The effort is Walmart’s latest in the drone delivery space. The retail giant already has drone trials underway to deliver “select grocery and household essentials” and a separate drone delivery test of certain health and wellness products. Walmart says the drone delivery of Covid-19 tests builds on its effort to build more innovative “contactless” delivery models during the pandemic. “The kits will land on the driveway, front sidewalk, or backyard of the customer’s home, depending on where there are cars and trees,” Walmart senior vice president of customer product, Tom Ward, said in a company announcement Tuesday. “There is no delivery or kit cost for customers electing to receive an at home kit delivered via drone,” Ward said. “Once the kits are delivered, the person will perform a self-administered nasal swab in the privacy of their home and send their sample back to Quest Diagnostics for testing using the included pre-paid shipping label.” Walmart’s expansion of drone delivery in the healthcare services space comes as retail rivals like Amazon, CVS Health and Walgreens Boots Alliance also experiment with drone delivery of prescriptions and other healthcare products. Photo. AP Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Armenian, Saudi Foreign Minister meet in Riyadh The two commended the positive dynamics of the development of political dialogue between Armenia and Saudi Arabia Pashinyan: Azerbaijan’s proximity shouldn’t worry border residents At the same time, he said that he “does not guarantee [the security of villagers] one hundred percent”. U.S. doesn’t see Russia as contributing to peace in Caucasus Patel made the remarks when asked about the implications of Russia’s withdrawal of peacekeepers from Karabakh. Up to 1% cashback when shopping on Wildberries with IDBank cards IDBank is launching an exclusive campaign on Wildberries for online shopping enthusiasts. |