Buying prescription drugs from Canada

CathyA's post got me to wondering how does one go about buying prescription drugs from Canada? or from any other non-U.S. source?

Sorry, I haven't a clue! Prescription charges in the UK seem waaaaaay below those on many other countries, and we have so many categories that don't pay a penny, including those who have ongoing, chronic illnesses like diabetes and coeliac disease, those under 18 ( still in full time ed)' uni students, pregnant women and those over 65.

One of my friends gets her most expensive medications from somewhere in Canada. I left a message for her to call me about it.

My friend just called back.

She says there are some things to first consider.

First, compare prices, making sure that the dosage of the meds are the same. When comparing total costs, factor in the cost of the medication and the shipping costs to find the true expense, as compared to purchasing locally or through your current insurance drug plan.

You will need to have a copy of your prescription faxed to the drug supplier/company. Some doctor's offices will do the faxing, although my friend's doctor will not, so she gets a paper script and faxes it to her drug company herself.

It takes approximately three weeks for that first prescription order to arrive. After that, if you have set up regular shipments, you can arrange that so the meds will arrive on a useful schedule.

The company she uses most is:
http://northwestpharmacy.com/

Also: http://www.tcds.com/

And: https://www.canadadrugs.com/

If it makes any difference, and it may not, she is very precise about what she does. She has been getting some of her meds this way for at least five years. She retired as an attorney and now her clients are seniors and lots of pro bono work.

Being an Arizonan, and having been for many years without health care, I can go on at great length about how to buy medications in Mexico at HUGE cost savings - about buying such in Canada I know nothing at all about. I'm kind of interested, though, as it's always good to have a backup plan. Rob

Thank you for this medication, it is very helpful for me...

There is something of an element of risk with this.

You take the chance of Customs opening the package, seeing it's an Rx from Canada, and seizing the meds. Since importing prescription drugs into the country is illegal, you have no recourse upon seizure.

Thanks Trade for reminding us of this...

I wish to h*ll that my dog's special allergy meds WERE made in the U.S. Each time he runs out of it there is drama while we wait for the next shipment from overseas and get updates every few days: "it's cleared customs" -- "it left the coast yesterday" etc. I think they are made somewhere in Europe, its a new drug. Meanwhile I have to determine whether or not to put him on a dose of Prednisone while we wait for the shipment. Pred needs to be tapered off, so it's hard to figure out how many days he will be on it.