STAT courier for labs, hospitals and pharmacies
STAT courier service across California. Specimens, blood products, pharmacy orders and medical equipment picked up and delivered within 90 minutes, with chain of custody and temperature control.
- 90-minute STAT
- HIPAA-trained drivers
- Chain of custody
- Refrigerated vans
- 24/7 dispatch
What a STAT courier run means
STAT is the medical word for now. A STAT courier run is the healthcare version of an ASAP delivery, with rules that a general courier does not have to follow.
When a lab calls for a STAT run, a result is usually waiting on the specimen, a patient is waiting on the result, or a procedure is waiting on a part. The run has to be fast, but it also has to be clean. That means the right container, the right temperature, a signature at every handoff and a driver who knows what a chain of custody form is for.
Our STAT runs are dispatched from the nearest city hub and go straight from pickup to drop with nothing else on board. Specimens stay in the containers your lab provides, refrigerated and frozen loads ride in temperature controlled vans, and the paperwork travels with the load. If a drop is refused or delayed, dispatch calls you before the specimen sits.
This page covers urgent runs. For scheduled lab pickups, pharmacy routes and the rest of our healthcare work, see our medical courier services. Many customers use both: a daily route for routine pickups and a STAT courier call when something cannot wait for the route.
What we carry on STAT courier runs
These are the medical loads we move most often on an urgent call.
Lab specimens
Blood, tissue and other specimens between draw sites, hospitals and reference labs, in the containers your lab provides.
Blood products
Units moved between blood banks and hospitals in temperature controlled vans, logged at pickup and delivery.
Pharmacy orders
STAT medication orders from hospital and retail pharmacies to wards, clinics and care homes.
Medical equipment
Surgical kits, instruments and devices that a procedure is waiting on.
Medical records
Records and imaging moved under HIPAA handling rules when a physical copy is required.
Clinical trial material
Samples and investigational product with chain of custody forms completed at every handoff.
Who books a STAT courier
Hospital and reference labs
STAT specimens between draw sites, emergency departments and reference labs when a result cannot wait for the next scheduled pickup.
Blood banks
Blood products moved between banks and hospitals in temperature controlled vehicles, with logs at both ends.
Pharmacies
STAT medication orders delivered to wards, clinics, surgery centers and care homes.
Surgery centers and clinics
Instruments, implants and kits a scheduled procedure is waiting on.
How a STAT courier run works
Call dispatch
Give the pickup, the drop, what is moving and the temperature range. Dispatch confirms the pickup time on the call.
Nearest driver sent
A HIPAA-trained driver with the right vehicle is sent from the closest hub, with refrigeration if needed.
Custody and transit
The driver checks the container and the count, signs the custody form and drives straight to the drop.
Delivered within 90 minutes
Signature, time and temperature log at delivery, sent to you as soon as it lands.
Typical STAT courier runs
A specimen at midnight in Los Angeles
An emergency department needs a specimen at a reference lab across town. A refrigerated van is sent from the nearest hub, the driver signs the custody form and the specimen is logged in at the lab within the window.
A blood product transfer in Sacramento
A hospital needs units from the blood bank on the other side of the metro. The driver collects them in a temperature controlled vehicle and the temperature log goes to both sides at delivery.
A surgery kit in San Diego
A procedure is scheduled and an instrument set is at the wrong site. The driver picks it up from the sterile processing department and delivers it to the surgery center before the case starts.
STAT courier service by city
Each city hub keeps drivers close to the hospitals and labs it serves, which is what makes a 90-minute STAT window realistic.
STAT coverage across California
STAT runs are dispatched from eleven city hubs, from Sacramento in the north to San Diego in the south, so the driver starts close to the hospital or lab that called. Longer medical runs between regions, such as a specimen going from Fresno to a reference lab in the Bay Area, are driven direct by one driver.
If your facility is outside the areas on our city pages, call dispatch. We will tell you on the call whether the 90-minute window holds and what the run costs.
Drivers on medical runs follow handling rules built on the HIPAA privacy rule, so patient information on labels and paperwork stays protected from pickup to drop.
What sets the price of a STAT run
There is no flat rate card, because no two runs are the same. These are the things dispatch asks about, and the price comes back on the call.
Distance
A run across one city prices differently from a run between two.
Temperature
Ambient, refrigerated and frozen loads each need a different vehicle.
Custody
Chain of custody forms and signatures at each handoff are part of the job.
Time of day
Night, weekend and holiday runs are quoted on the call.
Wait time
Time spent waiting for a specimen or a release is added to the run.
Volume
Labs with regular STAT volume can set up account pricing.
STAT, ASAP or a scheduled route?
STAT courier
Urgent medical runs within 90 minutes, with chain of custody and temperature control.
ASAP courier
The same direct, no-stops service for any freight, not just medical.
Scheduled route delivery
Daily lab pickups and pharmacy drops on fixed times with a named driver.
STAT courier questions
What does STAT courier mean?
STAT comes from the Latin statim, meaning immediately. A STAT courier picks up urgent medical items such as specimens, blood products or pharmacy orders and delivers them within a set window, for us 90 minutes.
Are your STAT drivers HIPAA trained?
Yes. Drivers on medical runs are HIPAA trained and follow chain of custody procedures, with a signature and timestamp at every handoff.
Can you keep specimens refrigerated or frozen?
Yes. Refrigerated cargo vans and box trucks hold the temperature range you set, and temperature logs are available on request.
Do you run STAT calls at night?
Yes. Dispatch is staffed 24/7, and STAT calls often come in outside office hours. Night and weekend runs are quoted on the call.
What is the difference between STAT and a routine medical courier?
A routine run is scheduled ahead, often as part of a daily route. A STAT run is booked for right now and goes direct, with no other stops.
Which cities do you cover for STAT runs?
STAT service runs from our hubs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, San Jose, Oakland, Sacramento, Fresno, Long Beach, Orange County, Burbank and Palo Alto.
Do you supply specimen containers or coolers?
Specimens travel in the containers your lab provides. We supply the temperature controlled vehicle and can carry coolers or shippers you hand to the driver.
Can a STAT run cross from one region to another?
Yes. A STAT courier run can go from one city to another, for example Fresno to the Bay Area, with the same driver the whole way. Longer distances are quoted on the call.
How do I set up STAT service for my lab?
Call dispatch or send a quote request. We set up your sites, contacts and handling rules once, so each STAT call after that is quick to book.
Need a STAT courier now?
Call dispatch with the pickup, the drop and the temperature range. A STAT courier is sent from the nearest hub as soon as the call ends.