Desperate For Advice On Importing Legit Drugs From Thailand

[Buddhaman]

Dear Expat friends of Thailand.

I'm in desperate need for Thai Hypertension and Asthma medication that has proven to be the best ones for me without any side effets. I was recently in Thailand where I purchased 6 months of supply but had my luggage lost/stolen and now stranded in USA without my much needed medication.

I have checked with the ''Authorities'' here, ie Customs, FDA etc and they confirm that 3 month supply is OK to send over provided it's shipped over by DHL/Fed Ex etc. and with a doctors note to attest that these are indeed my prescribed medications. (which I have)

Would anyone know of any pharmacy/drug store in Thailand who would undertake to ship them to me here and take credit card for payment??

Any and all suggestions, adive, etc will be very gratefully received.

Sawatdee Khrap!

Buddhaman

[Mossfinn]

It would help if you stated which medication you needed and where you are, to facilitate a local pharmacy of your choice.

Good Luck

Moss

[Jingthing]

I am pretty certain you can find equivalent meds in the USA, probably under a different brand name. Perhaps the issue is lack of US health insurance? Your request sounds logistically very difficult to arrange from abroad. Anyway, best of luck.

[bf2002]

You mentioned customs and the FDA. Are you living in the States? I'd like to know since it would mean I could also legally import 3 months worth of my prescription drugs.

If you're in need of hypertension drugs, the simplest solution is to call the hospital in Thailand that prescribed you the drugs and have that doctor write you a new script. You could then pay them with a credit card or if they aren't set up for online payment then you could always arrange a wire of the funds to the hospital.

Of coarse, if you had a trustworthy friend in Thailand, you could have him/her pay for the drugs and ship them to you, after you have wired them the money to do so.

Assuming these particular drugs are not highly regulated in Thailand, a pharmacy may carry them. Even if they don't, I've found the ones in large tourist areas can order drugs they don't normally carry. The disadvantage is that I'm pretty sure most Western developed countries FDA or equivalent organization isn't going to accept a pharmacists script --- they most likely require a medical doctor's script.

When you ship via FEDEX or DHL you'll also have to declare the drugs as such....which I guess wouldn't be a problem if the FDA/customs said you could do this.

If you ship the drugs and don't declare them, you may or may not get caught. If you get caught in the USA, they will seize the drugs. Depending on your particular state, the attorney general will decide whether to attempt prosecution. In most cases, they will just seize the drugs and write a letter giving you the right to contest it....which if you are dumb enough to do, they will most likely then prosecute the case (since you've just admitted you knew the drugs were sent to you and it wasn't properly declared).

The above info. is based on USA law, which technically doesn't allow you to import any drugs from overseas, although customs and the FDA are no longer enforcing this ban for drugs from Canada ONLY. But then if US customs/FDA said otherwise to you, maybe they are chosing to cut some slack....or maybe you aren't from the USA. ARe you?

[Super Hans]

If you ship the drugs and don't declare them, you may or may not get caught.

What is the likelihood that prescription drugs are intercepted on the way? I had to have some sent over to me in Thailand recently, and the package had been opened and examined. Would they routinely open mail containing, say, just 10 xanax pills? I'm thinking of sending some back to my house in the UK because I find them very effective for long haul flights, and don't wish to drain NHS resources by bothering a doctor.