Mercado Libre Brazil Begins Selling Prescription Drugs, Plans to Integrate at Least 20 Pharmacy Chains by Year-End

On September 26, Mercado Libre took a new step in its Brazilian pharmaceutical business. The platform announced that its own pharmacy has officially launched prescription drug sales, covering antibiotics and GLP-1 weight-loss injections. The purchase process requires buyers to upload a prescription first, which must be verified by a pharmacist before the purchase can be completed. The company plans to bring third-party pharmacy chains into its platform, with the first integration efforts starting in October and a goal to connect at least 20 pharmacy chains by the end of 2026. On the same day, Mercado Libre also launched Chega Agora, an instant delivery service initially covering parts of S?o Paulo, with a promise of delivery within 60 minutes. On the day of the announcement, shares of Brazilian pharmacy chains fell by up to 8%, as the market feared that Mercado Libre's low-price strategy would attract high-repeat customers away from traditional pharmacies. However, a price comparison study by JPMorgan, covering about 2,000 comparable items, showed that Mercado Libre's prescription and common over-the-counter drug prices were 5% to 6% higher than those at traditional pharmacies. This article was first published on the official Ebrun website [Source: Ebrun Go. Ebrun's automated writing robot delivers e-commerce insights in real time using algorithms; this bot is still young and welcome to contact run@ebrun.com or leave a message to help it grow.]