Bad news for lost medicine on a trip. Do not rely on overseas mail. Read this from The Women’s Travel Group.
What happens if you lose your pills, run out or drop them, as did a lady on our India trip. Can you get replacements overseas? Will local drugs be safe? The CDC recommends a minimum of 30 days medical supplies on a trip. Most drug companies refuse more than 30 days of medicine. If your trip is longer, plan immediately.
One can ask a doctor to overnight medicine. BUT shipping drugs to other countries might be illegal. DHL, Fedex and UPS reject prescription drugs. Even specialty shippers will not accept your package if medicine is a ‘controlled substance’. In many countries even a mild sedative is a ‘controlled substance’. This gets more complicated if you are on medicine for a chronic condition. If so, bring an official signed letter from your doctor, along with a “patient prescription information” sheet. This sheet provides information on common generic and brand medicines, their use, side effects, precautions, and drug interactions.
Some prescription drugs in the US are over the counter overseas. Conversely, some OTC drugs here, need a prescription in other countries. As an example, Melatonin usually needs a prescription out of the US. Conversely pain medicine like ibuprofen with a tiny amount of codeine might not. In some countries you can only buy one small container of ibuprofen.
Some brands we know, might come in a different dosage: ie Voltaren pain cream in the US is 1 or 2 %. Overseas it can be as high as 5%. Make sure you read the label or have someone translate for you.
Don’t be surprised at drug prices overseas. Medicine in other countries is surprisingly cheap. Medicine is usually part of a socialized medical system. Oddly emergency room treatment in a hospital might be free; but a few pills of ibuprofen post treatment might cost you.
Senior women traveling should carry a list of their medicines, prescription information/effects, phone numbers and faxes of doctors at home. Leave medicines in their original bottles. The CDC has an excellent and informative site for all seniors to review.
The CDC suggests that you replace lost medicine only from hospital pharmacies or those in large chain groceries or pharmacies. The NIH document outlines some rules for buying medicine overseas.
Some medical items which are hard to find overseas are:
Paxlovid the Covid 19 medicine.
Narcotics of any kind even mild sleeping pills.
Some medicines are illegal overseas; check with the Embassy of where you plan to travel.
Some US brands are not sold at all. Others like herbal and holistic ones might not be familiar to North Americans.
Travel Tips for Women who Love Adventure from The Women’s Travel Group Call us at 646 309 5607 or email us.
