Driving for medical courier and delivery apps represents an enticing opportunity for gig workers seeking maximum pay and schedule flexibility. However, earning the lofty sum of $1500 per week requires tremendous effort optimizing across multiple platforms. By combining insight from a popular driver vlogger with extensive additional research, we‘ll break down exactly what it takes to achieve this ambitious goal.
The Medical Delivery Boom
Forecasts suggest the broader gig economy could grow to over $455 billion in the US by 2023. Driving jobs specifically are projected to increase by double digit percentages over the coming decade according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
These seismic shifts away from conventional 9-5 employment open up potential for enterprising individuals. And few niche industries within the flourishing on-demand space offer more upside than medical courier work.
As America‘s overburdened healthcare apparatus strained even further amidst the pandemic, reliance on specialized transport companies exploded. Whether supplying PPE, testing kits, ventilators, pharmaceuticals, or routine inventory, medical facilities urgently require logistics support.
High value biologics, customized equipment orders, clinical trial materials, hazardous substances, along with overall heightened demand drive increased delivery volume and revenue rates. This steady growth and resilient recession-proof nature make medical one of the most appealing transport segments.
Market Projections
- Healthcare logistics projected to reach $144 billion globally by 2026
- North American pharma supply chain revenues to exceed $114 billion through 2030
- Home healthcare delivery category projected to rise 500% to $12+ billion by 2027
With exponential growth across medical transport segments, apps connecting independent drivers offer tremendous opportunity. Next we‘ll explore the most promising platforms.
Best Medical Courier Apps
Specialized services surpass passengers and pizzas for profit potential. Some leading logistics apps in the medical niche include:
GoShare
GoShare supports couriers using personal vehicles like sedans up to larger cargo vans and box trucks. They work with both major companies requiring outsourced last-mile delivery along with everyday individuals. Medical and healthcare shipments represent a major and growing business category. GoShare pays $20-25+ per hour depending on vehicle type.
Freight
An online load board for independent big rig truckers, cargo van owners and fleets. Freight provides direct access to shippers with urgent transportation needs across all categories. This includes a steady stream of medical devices, PPE gear, oxygen equipment, beds, pharmaceuticals and more between suppliers, hospitals, care facilities and government agencies. Pay often exceeds $1+ per mile for these lucrative loads.
Curry
While focused on restaurants and grocery delivery, Curry also transports critical healthcare products. Many drivers handle medicine, test kits, medical equipment and records dashes facilitating clinical trial logistics daily. Curry averages $20 per hour plus 100% of tips. They primarily operate across urban west coast regions currently.
Corral
A peer-to-peer delivery app where regular individuals earn extra income running local errands. Corral frequently assists regional medical providers, hospitals and pharmacies get supplies delivered urgently between locations. Also used by healthcare startups supporting elderly home services for meal, grocery and prescription transport earning up to $30 per trip.
Creative individuals utilize multiple apps and identify increased medical transport opportunities across virtually any platform from DoorDash to Uber. But vertical-specific services with established healthcare relationships offer the most direct volume.
After covering the apps to leverage, next we‘ll overview requirements to drive for medical networks followed by earning strategies.
Requirements and Responsibilities
All app-based courier roles share common expectations. But medical contracts impose additional precautions:
Vehicle Criteria
- Cars, trucks and vans 10 years or newer in most cases
- Routine maintenance and cleaning protocols
- Some networks permit older cargo vans in good condition
Driver Standards
- 21+ years of age
- Valid license and clean motor vehicle record
- Pass criminal history checks
- Show proof of valid rideshare insurance
Driving Duties
- Safely operating provided or personal vehicle
- Carefully handling healthcare equipment, records, supplies
- Following Hazmat handling procedures when required
-Taking pictures delivering to confirm order accuracy
Unlike conventional 9-5 jobs, you won‘t need industry-specific expertise. However some medical terminology knowledge helps navigate hospital loading docks and clinical environments. Customer service skills prove vital communicating with nurses, doctor‘s offices, home health aids and more during pickups and drop-offs.
Maximizing Weekly Earnings
The following strategies employed by top medical courier earners can help hit ambitious $1500 weekly goals:
Work Long Days
- Schedule 70-80+ hours per week
- Necessary to accommodate overnight pharmaceutical/inventory restocking runs
- Allows capitalizing on peak demand during business hours
Multi-Apping
- Run 2-4 apps simultaneously
- Reduces unpaid downtime between deliveries
- Increases demand volume across multiple networks
Hybrid Mix
- Combine predictable dedicated routes via steady contracts
- With flexible on-demand gigs filling gaps
Prioritize Rush Hours
- Peak medical inventory volume hits 11am-3pm
- Capture mid-day hospital, clinic, pharmacy restocking orders
Metro Markets Offer More Money
- Highest specialty medical activity in major cities and suburbs
- Versus lower paying rural and small town transport
App mix, hours worked and location choices have huge impact. Next we‘ll compare tradeoffs choosing medical delivery over alternatives.
Pros and Cons of Medical Courier Gigs
Pros
- Specialized Focus – Higher value medical inventory commands increased pay over general freight
- Recession Resilience – Healthcare logistics demand continues growing despite economic conditions
- Lower Mileage – Medical largely revolves around metropolitan trips versus long hauls
- Flexible Schedule – Perks of gig work remain choosing your hours week-to-week
Cons
- Strenuous Labor – Repeatedly lifting heavy boxes, tanks and equipment risks back injury
- Self Employment Taxes – Paying 100% payroll taxes reduces net income
- No Benefits – Missing typical employee perks like health insurance and retirement savings contributions
Let‘s compare tradeoffs in further detail against other prominent driving gigs.
Medical Delivery Versus Passenger Rideshare
Uber and Lyft provide unparalleled flexibility allowing drivers to start and stop working instantly. However rideshare‘s prevalence results in excessive market saturation and continually falling wages. Rideshare also prohibits many vehicle types and offers no specialization to merit higher pay like medical loads.
Overall earnings potential falls drastically short of medical, averaging just $9-15 per hour after vehicle expenses. Limited income growth potential long-term makes rideshare better suited as short-term supplemental versus full-time income.
Medical Delivery Versus Food/Package Delivery
Apps like DoorDash, Instacart and Amazon Flex follow a similar independent contractor model. They present fewer barriers to entry and quick signup. But again market saturation from overwhelming driver supply leads to extreme wage pressure.
Food delivery also lacks specialization. Transporting pizzas presents far less value than pharmaceuticals and clinical trial materials. And packages involve mostly low value consumer goods. Thus pay fails to compete with medical, averaging just $11-18 per hour.
While food and courier apps win for convenience, healthcare shipping best rewards effort invested.
Medical Delivery Versus Dedicated Trucking
Some drivers consider getting a Commercial Driver‘s License (CDL) and hauling loads for a specific shipping company. These dedicated route positions provide stability and predictability compared to flexible gig work. However they sacrifice independence by mandating assigned hours.
Most commercial driving roles also require operating tractortrailers across long distances. These prove less financially efficient than the predictable regional medical rounds on apps like GoShare and Curry.
Dedicated truckers typically earn $35-45k annually for time intensive over-the-road work. Savvy owner operators utilizing newer Class-B vehicles on targeted middle-mile medical lanes can outearn them through apps.
This comparison shows why medical occupies the optimal balance of control and compensation in the transport realm.
Now that we‘ve covered considerations in choosing medical over alternatives, let‘s build out a realistic weekly schedule.
Sample Weekly Schedule
To demonstrate what a $1500 earnings week could resemble, let‘s break down an example week in the life:
Monday
- 5:00am – Early start to claim first hospital PPE re-stock delivery routes via Curry paying $22 per hour plus mileage
- 9:15am – Multi-app to add urgent Corral prescription delivery between pharmacy and patient home while parked at hospital
- 12:30pm – Leverage rush hour demand by stacking additional Curry orders transporting medical records and test kits around a major metro for $27 per hour blended
- 4:45pm – Massive shipment of vaccine vials needs transporting to logistics hub. Claim higher per mile Freight order and earn over $150 moving these 45 miles.
- 9:00pm – Conclude Day 1 after 16 hour effort!
Tuesday
- 7:30am – Back at it early handling inventory deliveries from medical device manufacturer to resellers via GoShare at $2400 per load. 74 mile trip takes under 3 hours.
- 11:15am – Spend full afternoon driving for Freight again based from home. Handle multiple urgent hospital equipment moves at elevated pandemic rates. Allows optimizing home time rather than waiting in hospitals while idle.
- 6:30pm – Leverage evening prescription peak on Corral app to maximize hourly. Blend of short convenience store pharmacy runs at $19 per delivery.
- 10:00pm – Call it a day after almost 15 hours logged.
Wednesday
- 8:00am – Mix it up with Amazon Flex blocks delivering overflow Covid tests and durable medical equipment orders from warehouses to labs and residential addresses. Provides active day while taking advantage of Prime vans.
- 12:30pm – Return to trusty Curry app. Steady stream of multi-stop trips keeping med tech inventory stocked for the rest of afternoon.
- 6:00pm – Unwind and handle admin tasks for the business like accounting and vehicle maintenance.
Thursday – Sunday
- Rinse and repeat trying to work 12+ hour days blending Curry, Corral and Freight apps optimally.
- Occasionally flip to Passenger mode on Uber/Lyft after completing courier orders to keep cash flow rolling.
- Carefully track all miles driven across apps for taxes.
- Aim for early bedtimes to sustain crazy pace!
This demonstrates how blending multiple apps, dedicating long days, capturing peak demand periods and optimizing every hour ensures hitting lofty weekly goals. But maintaining this breakneck rate long-term poses challenges.
Risks and Downsides
Before rushing to register as a courier, understand significant hazards and disadvantages exist:
- Non-stop driving markedly raises risk of accidents or injuries
- Companies impose limited accountability, offloading most liability to contractors
- Lacking employment benefits like health insurance and paid time off strains safety nets
- Maintaining car insurance, paying high self-employment taxes and fuel costs erode net income
- Sustaining 70-80+ hour weeks leaves little time for family, health and vacation
Because independent contractors classify as self-employed, they assume substantial expense burdens and legal risks otherwise covered by formal employers.
Savvy drivers implement tactics to overcome disadvantages by:
- Rigorously tracking tax deductions like mileage to reduce tax liability
- Investing upfront in ergonomic accessories and vehicle mods to prevent injury
- Stashing cash aside from each check to self-fund medical insurance, retirement savings, emergency costs and periodic time off
However at the end of the day, these necessary compromises won‘t match comprehensive corporate benefits and protections.
Getting Started with Medical Courier Gigs
For those enticed to capture their slice of this high growth work, here are steps to begin:
1) Obtain Essential Gear
- Reliable vehicle meeting age and maintenance requirements
- Large cooler for temperature sensitive pharmaceuticals + hot bag for food orders
- Phone mount + charger for gig app navigation
- Safety gear like lifting belt, work gloves, back brace, stretcher
2) Pass Onboarding Requirements
- Submit to background check, vehicle inspection and license verification
- Provide valid rideshare insurance proof and purchase add-ons if lacking
3) Choose Apps Wisely
- Start with 2-3 medical delivery specific networks like recommended here or searched online
- Avoid oversaturating food delivery and rideshare apps
4) Maximize Profitability
- Claim higher value specialized hospital supply, clinical trial medication routes
- Reject lower paying fast food and convenience store runs
- Position in wealthier regions and medical campus hotspots with surge pricing
5) Tweak Mix Based on Goals
- Adding passenger rideshare increases hours but decreases average pay
- Dedicated routes via steady contract work cuts flexibility but boosts consistency
6) Master Workflow
- Queue multiple apps simultaneously to minimize unpaid downtime
- Learn hospital workflows to optimize pickup and dropoff timing
- Become surgical capturing short urgent delivery surges
7) Rigorously Track Finances
- Utilize mileage tracking apps and account for expenses
- File quarterly estimated taxes to avoid giant end-of-year liability
- Regularly validate insurance needs as 1099 employee
This checklist assists aspiring medical couriers hit the ground running while avoiding critical mistakes.
For additional tips on managing taxes, accountancy, scaling a delivery business, and optimizing gig platforms check out the below resources:
Helpful Medical Delivery Insights
How to Start a Medical Courier Business
Maximizing On-Demand Delivery Profits
How Much Can Delivery Drivers Make?
Conclusion
Medical courier work clearly offers unmatched financial upside compared to alternatives. However, the huge earnings expectations set by headlines fail to tell the entire story. Before rushing in, understand the significant effort and costs involved having a shot at such high incomes.
Be realistic assessing your risk tolerance and lifestyle needs before committing to the non-stop hustle required. For those focused purely on maximizing immediate earnings above all else, rapidly shuttling critical patient cargo between healthcare end points promises unrivaled income velocity. Just prepare for life in the fast lane!