When you travel overseas, you’ll spend a lot of time creating itineraries and comparing hotel prices. It can take a lot to stay organized, but be sure to spend a few minutes thinking about your prescriptions. You’ll need to make sure that you have appropriate access to your medicine, and that takes some forethought.
Fortunately, you can get most prescriptions filled at foreign pharmacies without too much trouble. Here are a few steps to keep you safe and well-stocked during your trip.
Prescriptions: Our Top Tips
- Take the right information and documentation with you when you travel. If you think that you might need to fill a prescription in a foreign country, come prepared. Get a full prescription from your doctor, preferably with a description of your disease or condition. Ask for copies of your prescription and keep them in several bags to make sure that you’ll have access to them overseas.
- Know local laws. Depending on where you’re traveling, your medications might be illegal. You can find out by calling a local pharmacy or the embassy in your destination country.
- Ask whether your prescription is valid in the country and how much medicine you can legally bring over the border.
- Travel with an adequate amount of medicine to avoid re-filling your prescription when possible. If you visit your doctor and explain your travel plans, you can often get a special one-time extended prescription. You can use this prescription to get a relatively large amount of your medications, which might help you avoid refills during your trip. Note that your airline might have rules about traveling with large amounts of prescription drugs.
- Call your airline before you go to the airport to make sure that you’ll be able to board with your medications.
- Keep your doctor’s contact information on hand. Foreign pharmacists will often need to contact your physician’s office to verify your prescription. Bring your doctor’s fax, phone and email information.
By keeping all of your prescription information on hand, you should be able to avoid trouble when traveling overseas. Talk over your travel plans with your physician and look into medical alert bracelets, vaccinations and other ways to stay safe during your travels.
