The Student Union held its Capsule Kickoff on Oct. 13 to connect students with a free prescription delivery service, according to a post on their Instagram page. CapsuleCare is a “smarter, simpler, kinder pharmacy,” according to their webpage.
“The Student Union has partnered with Capsule to promote an efficient, accessible, and free pharmacy option for all interested Brandeis students. This service is an additional option available to students for refilling prescription medication,” according to an email sent to community members on Oct. 11.
The kickoff occurred outside of Usdan Student Center and members of the Student Union passed out giveaway prizes to showcase the partnership.
The partnership went live on Oct. 12, according to an Instagram post on the Student Union’s page. Students can transfer their existing prescriptions from their current pharmacy to capsule in 60 seconds, according to the email, via an online form. To transfer prescription services students can either visit the Capsule website or can download the Capsule app to their device.
The service coordinates delivery with the user’s doctor or prior pharmacy to fill the prescription, according to the email. It also accepts most forms of insurance. The service sends a text to users with a link to schedule free same-day delivery or pre-scheduled delivery.
The email from the Student Union explains that “Capsule delivers your prescriptions directly to campus, either the same day or on a scheduled date, manages your refills, and has pharmacists available to text or chat, 7 days a week – Capsule takes all major insurances, at no additional cost to you!”
To receive deliveries users have to download the Capsule app on their devices. In the app, they can enter the university’s address—415 South Street, Waltham, MA, 02453—for delivery information. Users can then select where they would want their pick-up location on campus to be. When selecting the location, students should be sure to give exact directions for their driver to locate them, according to the email.
The email states that the union’s “goal in partnering with Capsule is to provide students with a more accessible and friendlier pharmacy option; Capsule is convenient, efficient, free, and works with insurance so you don’t have to!”
The contents of deliveries from this service are confidential, according to the email. The driver will not know the prescription is filled, only the name of the user of the service to deliver to. Students should be aware that when scheduling a delivery someone must be present during the two-hour delivery window. According to the email, the person present does not have to be the recipient of the medication—it could be a friend or a roommate. Someone must be present because the medicine cannot be left unattended.
The Student Union did a Q&A to answer students’ questions about Capsule on their Instagram. Hana Klempnauer Miller ’25, Student Union Director of Accessibility, answered community members’ questions. The service fills birth control prescriptions, Klempnauer Miller explained; the company has also made a commitment towards reproductive justice. Students do not need a provider in Massachusetts in order to get their prescriptions delivered through Capsule. Klempnauer Miller explained that students can link their home state provider to Capsule Boston in order to get their prescriptions filled. The service can also be used by international students, Klempnauer Miller said; the only requirement is that the prescription has to be prescribed by a doctor in the United States.
One question asked in the forum was how the partnership would affect students who already use Capsule. The collaboration would allow for students to now receive their medications directly in the mail room, which was not a feature previously available. It also gives the carriers information about the campus to make deliveries go more smoothly and also makes the university a priority in the company’s delivery schedule. Students are also able to text the service with questions with their insurance or medication, Klempnauer Miller explained.
The Student Union recognized in the email the challenges students have faced in the past when trying to access their prescriptions. The Chief Pharmacist of Capsule, Sonia Patel Jain, has worked in traditional pharmacy settings for decades, according to the Capsule website. The experience “made her all too familiar with the frustrations of patients,” according to the page.
The company’s “new approach” to the pharmacy is an attempt to make the delivery process easier for clients. Capsule has a “predictive inventory,” according to their page, meaning that the company always has the medications needed by their consumers in stock. The company tries to claim their “entire fulfillment process is smarter, safer and nicer” than the traditional pharmacy prescription services.
Capsule works faster than traditional pharmacies, according to the page, because users never have to wait in line at the pharmacy for the prescriptions, which are instead brought straight to their door. The company also keeps track of refills so that users do not have to. Capsule also has no voicemail Autobot for users; instead, the service allows users to text, call, email or chat with their pharmacist whenever it is convenient for them. The service also coordinates with user’s doctors and insurance so that they do not have to talk with their insurance company, according to their page.
