Pharmacy networks FAQs

Members who have this benefit can obtain supplies for up to 90 or 100 days for covered maintenance drugs through our home delivery pharmacy, Amazon Pharmacy®. Maintenance drugs are those drugs taken on an ongoing, regular basis to maintain health.

To receive medications from Amazon Pharmacy, you must first register either online, by phone, or by mail. You’ll need to provide such as your name, shipping address, payment method, and drug allergies.

Our contracted home delivery pharmacy fills supplies of maintenance medications for up to 90 or 100 days, depending on your pharmacy plan benefit. If your physician writes a prescription quantity of 30 days, the pharmacy will dispense that amount.

Blue Shield members without Amazon Prime can expect 5-day delivery, and Amazon Prime members get 2-day delivery at no additional cost.

Depending upon your pharmacy benefit plan, you may save money by using our contracted home delivery pharmacy, Amazon. Amazon Pharmacy can fill your maintenance medications for an extended supply (90 or 100 days depending on your plan) and ship them to the address of your choice.

If your doctor has indicated refills on your prescription, then you can order a refill of that prescription through the home delivery pharmacy when you’ve taken three-quarters of your current fill of medication.

A specialty drug is a medication used to treat complex or chronic conditions that usually requires close patient monitoring. Specialty drugs may be self-administered by injection or inhalation, orally or topically. These drugs may also require special handling and have limited prescribing or limited pharmacy availability. A complete list of specialty drugs is available on the Drug formulary page.

Most Blue Shield members are required to obtain covered specialty drugs through our Network Specialty Pharmacies (check your Evidence of Coverage to see the days’ supply allowed by your plan). To fill specialty drugs, members should contact one of Blue Shield’s Network Specialty Pharmacies.

Blue Shield Network Specialty Pharmacies deliver specialty drugs via courier to the location of the member’s choice (home, work, or retail location). The specialty pharmacy provides pharmacist consultation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and all supplies required for administration of the medication (e.g., needles, syringes, alcohol swabs, sharps containers, etc.), at no additional charge. Medications are always packaged for appropriate handling requirements, such as refrigeration.

Members should allow three to five business days from the time a Network Specialty Pharmacy mails the prescription  to receive specialty drugs.

Note: You should have at least two weeks of medications on hand before ordering a new prescription through one of the Network Specialty Pharmacies.

Some situations that can delay a prescription from being filled are an incomplete or illegible prescription, incomplete registration with the Network Specialty Pharmacy, prescription drug manufacturer backorders, and prescription drugs that require prior authorization for medical necessity. Most specialty drugs require prior authorization and your Network Specialty Pharmacy can start the request for you.

A complete list of specialty drugs is available on the Drug formulary page.