- Express Scripts is a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) in the Evernorth family (Cigna Group), not a standalone insurer; its mail-order arm delivers 90-day supplies of maintenance medications to your door.
- Enroll and order at express-scripts.com or in the Express Scripts mobile app, or call the member-services number printed on YOUR insurance/member ID card — that card is the only reliable source for the right phone number and plan details.
- Your cost is set by your specific plan, not by Express Scripts; many plans price a 90-day mail-order fill at roughly two retail copays instead of three, but you should confirm your own pricing before switching.
- Auto-refill, prescription transfers, order tracking, and free standard shipping (including cold-pack shipping for temperature-sensitive drugs) are standard features you manage in your account.
- First fills take longer than retail because of verification and shipping; plan ahead so you never run out, and keep a short-term retail option for urgent needs.
Picking up prescriptions at a retail pharmacy every month costs you time and, often, extra money. Express Scripts mail order pharmacy offers an alternative: 90-day supplies of maintenance medications shipped directly to your home, frequently at a lower cost per dose than monthly retail fills. Express Scripts administers pharmacy benefits for a large share of Americans through employer, health-plan, and government contracts, and many of those members are eligible for home delivery. This guide explains how the service works, how to sign up, how to place and manage orders, and how to get the accurate contact details for your plan. It is general information, not medical, insurance, or financial advice; confirm specifics with your plan and clinician.
Who Express Scripts Is: A Quick PBM Primer
Express Scripts is a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), not a standalone insurance company. A PBM sits between your health plan, pharmacies, and drug manufacturers: it builds the formulary (the list of covered drugs and their tiers), negotiates prices and rebates, processes pharmacy claims, and operates mail-order and specialty pharmacies. Express Scripts is part of Evernorth Health Services, the health-services division of The Cigna Group. That corporate structure is worth knowing because your drug coverage, copays, and mail-order rules are ultimately defined by your specific plan and its contract with Express Scripts — not by Express Scripts acting alone. For the bigger picture of how PBMs shape drug pricing and access, see our healthcare policy guide and our overview of Express Scripts.
FMHC is an independent education site and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Express Scripts, Evernorth, or The Cigna Group. Product names are used only to describe the service.
How Express Scripts Mail Order Works
Express Scripts operates centralized home-delivery pharmacy facilities that fill and ship prescriptions across the country. When you enroll in Express Scripts mail order pharmacy, eligible prescriptions are filled at one of these facilities rather than at your local drugstore. As the company notes, your prescription may be processed by any pharmacy within its family of mail-order pharmacies.
The service is built around maintenance medications — drugs you take regularly for ongoing conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, hypothyroidism, high cholesterol, or depression. Instead of a 30-day supply each month, home delivery typically provides a 90-day supply in one shipment. Many plans encourage this by pricing a 90-day mail-order fill at roughly the equivalent of two retail monthly copays instead of three, but the exact math is set by your plan design, so confirm it before assuming a saving.
Orders ship via mail and parcel carriers depending on the medication and destination, and standard shipping is generally free. Temperature-sensitive medications such as insulin and other biologics ship in insulated packaging with cold packs, usually at no extra charge. Delivery details, packaging, and available shipping speeds can vary by plan and by product.
Signing Up for Mail Order
Enrollment takes only a few steps, and you have several ways to start. Whichever route you choose, have your member ID card handy — it carries the identifiers Express Scripts needs and the correct phone number for your plan.
Online registration: Go to express-scripts.com and create an account using the member ID from your insurance/member card. Once registered, open the medications or “order prescriptions” area and follow the prompts to transfer an existing prescription or start a new one. The site walks you through your shipping address, payment method, and prescription details.
Mobile app: The Express Scripts mobile app (iOS and Android) offers the same core functions as the website. You can register, request refills, transfer prescriptions, track orders, set up auto-refill, and check your plan pricing from your phone.
By phone: Call the member-services number printed on your Express Scripts or health-plan ID card. A representative can verify your identity, confirm that your benefit includes home delivery, and help set up your first prescription. Because the correct number depends on your specific plan and employer group, use the number on your card rather than any number you find in a random online listing. Have your member ID, current prescription bottle or number, and prescribing doctor’s contact information ready.
Through your doctor: Ask your prescriber to electronically send a 90-day prescription directly to Express Scripts home delivery. Your prescriber’s office can locate the correct Express Scripts pharmacy destination in their e-prescribing system; you can also find your plan’s home-delivery details in your online account. This route is often the fastest because it skips a separate transfer step.
Placing Orders and Managing Refills
After your initial enrollment, reordering is straightforward, and Express Scripts offers several refill methods:
Automatic refills: Enroll eligible prescriptions in the auto-refill program. Express Scripts estimates when your supply is running low and processes a refill without action from you. You typically receive advance notice before each shipment so you can delay or skip a fill if you have extra on hand.
Manual refills online or in the app: Log in, select the prescription, and choose “refill.” Refills generally process within a couple of business days and ship with free standard delivery. The app can also send a push notification when your refill window opens so you can reorder in a few taps.
By phone: You can request refills through the automated phone system using the number on your member ID card. Have your prescription number ready — it is printed on the medication label from a prior fill.
Delivery Timeline and Tracking
First-time orders take the longest — commonly up to about two weeks — because they include prescription verification, prescriber confirmation, benefit processing, and shipping. Express Scripts may contact your doctor if anything needs clarifying, which can add time. Timelines vary, so treat any specific number of days as an estimate rather than a guarantee.
Subsequent refills usually process and ship faster, often within a few business days, plus standard delivery time. Expedited shipping may be available for a fee if you need medication sooner. Track every order through your online account or the app; Express Scripts provides a tracking number once a shipment is in transit and can send email or text notifications at key stages — order received, prescription verified, shipped, and delivered.
What It Costs: Your Plan Sets the Price
The single most important point about cost is that your plan, not Express Scripts, sets what you pay. Copays, coinsurance, deductibles, and whether mail order is discounted at all are defined by your specific benefit design. Two people using the same Express Scripts mail-order pharmacy for the same drug can pay very different amounts.
To illustrate the common pattern: if a generic maintenance drug costs a $10 copay per 30-day retail fill, three months at retail is $30, while a 90-day mail-order fill priced at two copays would be $20 — a modest per-quarter saving. For higher-tier or brand drugs, the gap can be larger or, in some plans, negligible. Express Scripts has historically promoted average savings for members who move maintenance drugs to home delivery, but the only figure that matters for your budget is the one in your plan documents or your account’s pricing tool. Some employer plans also apply a “maintenance medication” rule that raises your retail copay (or stops covering the drug at retail) after an initial grace period, effectively steering long-term prescriptions to mail order. Check your plan for any such provision.
What Medications Are Eligible
Most maintenance medications qualify for home delivery. Common categories include cardiovascular drugs (ACE inhibitors, beta-blockers, statins), diabetes medications (metformin, glipizide, insulin), thyroid hormones (levothyroxine), antidepressants (SSRIs and SNRIs), asthma and COPD controllers (inhaled corticosteroids), and osteoporosis treatments.
Controlled substances can be dispensed by mail in many states, though some states and some Schedule II medications carry restrictions; the ordering system flags applicable limits. Specialty medications — high-cost drugs for complex conditions like autoimmune disease, cancer, or hepatitis — are generally handled separately through Accredo, Express Scripts’ specialty pharmacy, which involves separate enrollment and clinical support. For a comparison with how another PBM structures specialty services, see our guide to OptumRx specialty pharmacy.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Prescription requires prior authorization: Express Scripts contacts your prescriber to start the prior authorization process, which can add several days. Check your account for status and confirm with your doctor’s office that they have submitted the needed documentation.
Medication is on backorder: Drug shortages can affect availability. Express Scripts generally notifies you and works with your prescriber on an alternative; in the meantime you may be able to fill a short-term supply at a retail pharmacy.
Address or payment issues: Update your shipping address and payment method in your account before ordering. Expired cards and outdated addresses are common causes of delays.
Prescription expired or out of refills: Prescriptions are generally valid for up to one year. If yours has lapsed, Express Scripts contacts your prescriber for a renewal — or you can proactively ask your doctor to send a fresh 90-day prescription.
Frequently Asked Questions
What phone number do I call for Express Scripts mail order?
Use the member-services number printed on your Express Scripts or health-plan ID card, or manage everything at express-scripts.com or in the app. The correct number depends on your specific plan and employer group, so your card is the reliable source — avoid dialing numbers from unofficial listings.
Can I still use a retail pharmacy if I use Express Scripts mail order?
Yes, especially for acute, short-term medications like antibiotics. For maintenance drugs, check your plan — some raise your copay or limit coverage at retail after an initial fill period to encourage home delivery.
How do I transfer a prescription to Express Scripts mail order?
Log into your account or app and request a mail-order transfer; Express Scripts may move remaining refills directly. If the prescription must be rewritten for a 90-day quantity, Express Scripts contacts your prescriber, or you can ask your doctor to send a new 90-day prescription electronically.
What if I am traveling and need my medication shipped elsewhere?
You can add temporary shipping addresses to your account. Request the change before your next refill ships. You can also hold shipments if you will be away and want to delay delivery.
Is Express Scripts mail order available for TRICARE?
Yes. Express Scripts administers the TRICARE pharmacy benefit, including home delivery, and beneficiaries can order 90-day supplies through that program. Copays and rules for TRICARE differ from commercial plans, so verify details through your TRICARE pharmacy benefit.
Getting Started Today
If you take a medication regularly and your pharmacy benefit runs through Express Scripts, home delivery is one of the simplest ways to save time and, often, money. Identify your maintenance medications, then enroll them at express-scripts.com, in the app, or by calling the number on your member ID card. Set up auto-refill for your most critical prescriptions so you never face a gap, confirm your own copay before switching, and keep a short-term retail option in mind for anything urgent.
For a broader understanding of how Express Scripts mail order pharmacy fits into the PBM landscape and your overall healthcare benefits, visit our healthcare policy guide.
This article is general information, not medical, insurance, or financial advice, and FMHC is not affiliated with Express Scripts, Evernorth, or Cigna. Your coverage, copays, eligible drugs, and the correct phone number are set by your specific plan — confirm them using the number on your member ID card and your account at express-scripts.com, and discuss medication decisions with your prescriber or pharmacist.
Sources
- Express Scripts (Evernorth) — express-scripts.com home-delivery and account information: enrollment channels, 90-day fills, auto-refill, prescription transfers, home delivery, and the instruction to use the number on your member ID card (verify current details)
- Evernorth Health Services / The Cigna Group — corporate description of Express Scripts as a pharmacy benefit manager within Evernorth
- General PBM background — how pharmacy benefit managers administer formularies, claims, and mail-order/specialty pharmacies