[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by Quixote

This is only partially true. To go into a pharmacy IN Canada, one must have a prescription written by a Canadian physician. When we are in Canada, we bring our prescriptions written by our local physicians here, and we have a Canadian doctor who simply writes the identical prescriptions which we fill in Canada.

When we are not visiting Canada, for years we order our brand name drugs from Canadian MAIL ORDER pharmacies (NOT a local Canadian pharmacy). We have given these instructions to several of our doctors here.

Go online to Drug Price Comparisons & Online Pharmacy Safety | PharmacyChecker.com. Enter the name of any brand name drug you use (excluding controlled substances, which they are not permitted to fill), and look at the list of member MAIL ORDER pharmacies offering that particular drug and their price(s). Their websites will also tell you where the drug is manufactured; some are Canada, though most are overseas. Other than Canada, most often the drugs we use are manufactured in India, Turkey, and Australia and most often shipped through Mauritius. Of course, if one needs a medication immediately, for example, an antibiotic, buying this way is not practical.

Some pharmacies sell meds manufactured in different places—and clearly say so—at times with varying prices. Some sell both brand name and generic versions of the same medication and again clearly say so. Most but not all charge for shipping (though generally an order of more than one prescription will have only one shipping charge). Some offer first-time buyers a bonus; others offer a bonus if you refer someone else who buys. Most will price-match each other. Most are members of CIPA (Canadian International Pharmacy Association). They are businesses like any other business. I myself am a dual citizen (US-Canada) and so am familiar with the locations of some of these pharmacies.

If you tend to be doubtful about the value of purchasing prescription medications this way, at least take a look at the Drug Price Comparisons & Online Pharmacy Safety | PharmacyChecker.com website, enter a high-priced drug you use, and see where it takes you. It's also interesting to read the information provided on their websites about Canadian mail order pharmacies and how they operate. We've been doing this for years and have never had a problem.




And how do YOU know you are getting an exact formulation here? And how do YOU know where the medication you pick up at a local pharmacy was manufactured? Think about it....

Very true but here we at least in theory have the FDA looking out for us. We buy our maintenance drugs thru a huge mail order pharmacy and hope they also make sure we are getting drugs made properly. They do have their reputation on the line.