PHILADELPHIA — GoPuff will begin delivering at-home PCR COVID-19 tests directly to customers who order within minutes through its partnership with Purlab. GoPuff, which delivers thousands of everyday items including cleaning supplies, baby products, alcohol and over-the-counter medications in 30 minutes, is the first company to offer instant delivery of at-home COVID-19 test kits in the United States.
Purlab is an at-home COVID-19 testing platform. The test is saliva based, saving users from having to have someone insert a swab up their nose. The proprietary technology allows someone to register and take the test within minutes in their own home. Results are returned in as few as 24 hours from the time the lab receives the sample, alerting users with a text message and email.
The test is available on goPuff for $129 and is covered by most insurance carriers.
“The health and wellbeing of goPuff’s customers, employees, driver partners and the community is always our top priority, which is why we continue to identify new opportunities to give back and provide support,” said Rafael Ilishayev, goPuff’s co-founder and co-CEO. “goPuff's unique business model enables us to quickly add new products to our assortment, then safely deliver those items to customers in just minutes from our local micro-fulfillment centers. We’re thrilled to partner with Purlab and offer customers a new, faster and more convenient way to access COVID-19 tests.”
“In addition to accuracy and accessibility, saving time is incredibly important to consumers seeking to test for COVID. This first-of-its-kind partnership with goPuff allows us to get Purlab test kits into the hands of customers nationwide within minutes,” said Michael Cohen, president of Purlab. “Purlab is the most-user friendly COVID-19 test on the market today and the only one with a mobile app, allowing our users to register their kit, take the saliva test, pack it in a pre-labeled box and receive test results from the lab in as few as 24 hours.”
The test was developed and is run in collaboration with Rutgers University RUCDR Infinite Biologics Lab and was the first Food and Drug Administration (FDA) emergency-use-authorization (EUA)-approved SARS-COV-2 Saliva Test, according to goPuff.
GoPuff has donated more than 50,000 masks to the city of Philadelphia, the city of Miami, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and to universities across the country. GoPuff also launched a campaign for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and matched $1 million in donations for the Club’s COVID-19 Relief Fund and announced its $1 million Health Care Support Initiative earlier this year.
Additionally, as part of its response to the pandemic, goPuff has enabled non-contact delivery and implemented changes across the business to help protect the health and safety of its customer, driver partner and employee communities, it said. This includes offering paid leave and financial assistance for driver partners and employees, introducing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-recommended cleanliness procedures, advising all employees and driver partners to wear gloves while at work and enhancing regular cleaning of offices, vehicles and micro-fulfillment centers, the company said.
Philadelphia-based goPuff is an app-powered delivery company that operates in more than 500 cities. Its micro-fulfillment centers deliver products for a flat $1.95 delivery fee. It is open 24/7 in many markets and late night everywhere else. In October, the company said it raised $380 million in new funding to further accelerate its geographic expansion, product category offerings and investment in talent. This winter, goPuff closed on its acquisition of alcohol beverage retailer BevMo.
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