jeans
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Any problems receiving meds through the mail in CSL?
Tonight I met an American woman who lives full time on the west cape. She receives her mail at a Mail Box Etc. in CSL. Until recently she and her
mother, who lives with her, have received their prescribed medications in the mail. These medications are not available in Mexican farmacias.
Around the first of February MBE has begun refusing receipt of these packages citing pressure by the government. My friend was told that MBE is
looking for a solution, but it might cost them more.
She's here now to get her meds, but for obvious reasons flying in to go the the drug store is not a viable option.
Has anybody else in that area encountered this roadblock? She was not told specifically that mail-order meds were illegal. Are they? They are shipped
from the US, with legal prescriptions.
Mom always told me to be different - Now she says...Not THAT different
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arrowhead
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The only two legal ways to bring prescription drugs into Mexico are (1) carry them in on your person and you have to be the person to whom the drugs
are prescribed; or (2) have them imported through a customs broker and the broker has to obtain an Autorizacion Sanitaria to import them.
It has always been illegal to mail or fed-ex drugs into Mexico, but not enforced. I guess they are getting serious.
No soy por ni contra apatía.
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wessongroup
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| Quote: | Originally posted by arrowhead
The only two legal ways to bring prescription drugs into Mexico are (1) carry them in on your person and you have to be the person to whom the drugs
are prescribed; or (2) have them imported through a customs broker and the broker has to obtain an Autorizacion Sanitaria to import them.
It has always been illegal to mail or fed-ex drugs into Mexico, but not enforced. I guess they are getting serious. |
Thank you that was the way I understood the process also...
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woody with a view
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it's working!
the war on drugs, that is....
[Edited on 2-21-2010 by woody in ob]
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Santiago
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| Quote: | Originally posted by jeans
Until recently she and her mother, who lives with her, have received their prescribed medications in the mail. These medications are not available in
Mexican farmacias.
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This seems odd to me; if she were able to obtain a prescription from a mexican physician for these drugs shouldn't the farmacia be able to order them?
Or are you saying that there are drugs available in the US but not in Mexico? Normally just the opposite.
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wessongroup
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Santiago
| Quote: | Originally posted by jeans
Until recently she and her mother, who lives with her, have received their prescribed medications in the mail. These medications are not available in
Mexican farmacias.
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This seems odd to me; if she were able to obtain a prescription from a mexican physician for these drugs shouldn't the farmacia be able to order them?
Or are you saying that there are drugs available in the US but not in Mexico? Normally just the opposite. |
Just a guess... insurance payments on precriptions written in Mexico.. not allowed.. you come out of pocket... and isn't that the American way.. gee,
just think if one could get a precription written and filled in Mexico... with shippment into the United State or coming back the other way... and
have it payed by ones insurance coverage 
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jeans
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Santiago
| Quote: | Originally posted by jeans
Until recently she and her mother, who lives with her, have received their prescribed medications in the mail. These medications are not available in
Mexican farmacias.
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This seems odd to me; if she were able to obtain a prescription from a mexican physician for these drugs shouldn't the farmacia be able to order them?
Or are you saying that there are drugs available in the US but not in Mexico? Normally just the opposite. |
Let me clarify. These are US prescribed medications. It is my understanding that since they cannot be obtained in Mexico, they cannot be prescribed by
a Mexican physician. I could be wrong. (I will suggest the Mexican importation route, but that may be what Arrowhead suggested) In one case, a
substitute drug that is available in MX did not work.
I would think that with the number of retired Americans in MX this is a significant issue. If MX does not provide the needed medications, they should
not prevent legal residents from obtaining what they need to survive without resorting to the subterfuge which has been suggested through U2Us.
Love the new avatar, Santiago. It's so you.
Mom always told me to be different - Now she says...Not THAT different
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jeans
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| Quote: | Originally posted by wessongroup
Just a guess... insurance payments on precriptions written in Mexico.. not allowed.. you come out of pocket... and isn't that the American way.. gee,
just think if one could get a precription written and filled in Mexico... with shippment into the United State or coming back the other way... and
have it payed by ones insurance coverage |
Good point!
Mom always told me to be different - Now she says...Not THAT different
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Woooosh
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I'll bet you dollars to donuts- if you took a poll about why so many Nomads live near the border you'd get answers like VA Care, Medicare Providers
and Prescription Drugs paid for by Medicare or VA.
I had a friend in Puerto Vallarta die after waiting too long to fly back to the USA for treatment. He knew he was sick- so why did he move so far
away? One consideration every person considering becoming an expat should be "Where will we get the medical care and drugs we may need?" (as we get
older- most people need more of both). People need to choose wisely and not depend on a foreign country's whims whether or not you get the medicines
they need. Beyond that it- once again, comes down to an individuals comfort level with medical isolation. And that's the level before an earthquake
strikes or a tsunami hits (even the USA couldn't get it right after Katrina).
\"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing\"
1961- JFK to Canadian parliament (Edmund Burke)
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bajalou
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Santiago
| Quote: | Originally posted by jeans
Or are you saying that there are drugs available in the US but not in Mexico? Normally just the opposite. |
There are many drugs that are available in the US by prescription that are not available in Mexico at all. |
No Bad Days
\"Never argue with an idiot. People watching may not be able to tell the difference\"
\"The trouble with doing nothing is - how do I know when I\'m done?\"
Nomad Baja Interactive map
And in the San Felipe area - check out Valle Chico area |
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jeans
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My parents moved to Rosarito 25+ years for the affordability of a cliff-side home that he built himself, while still working stateside. Health care
was not an issue they took into consideration at the time, hence the occassional queries I put out trying to find services for them...now it's on me
to get them help now that they are in their 80's and firmly entrenched in the idea of staying put.
Their costs are only a few hundred dollars a month. They can't get an apartment anywhere in SD countyfor that!
This query was not intended to resurrect the debate on healthcare options for the American expat population, just to inquire about the mailling meds
to Baja issue.  Yes...it's part of that conversation.
Anybody have anything else to add to the mailing of meds topic?
Mom always told me to be different - Now she says...Not THAT different
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arrowhead
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Woooosh
One consideration every person considering becoming an expat should be "Where will we get the medical care and drugs we may need?" (as we get older-
most people need more of both). |
Yeah, Mexico is no country for old men. 
No soy por ni contra apatía.
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wessongroup
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You can receive them by mail, if the amount is small.. that is what I have been told.. the service which we have just started with, will bring them
across... provided that the amounts are "reasonable"
They go up on Mondays and Wednesdays for pick-ups.. at their mail drop in the states, both P.O. Box and "street address address".
Not sure if that helps.. but, I'm sure most of the "mail services" must do small pickups.. the day we signed up for the service a lady was picking up
a "box" of medication ... the owner was asking that she NOT received a years supply at one time.. and explained to the individual that "they" would
bring them back down.. but, would rather do it in a very discrete manner..
I'm sure that you can find a service which will take care of this issue.. 
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CaboMagic
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Hi jeans ... at the risk of being/sounding not at all helpful I will do so anyway and say "Everything Changes and Everything Remains The Same" ...
it's one way today and another in a few mananas ... much patience and strength dealing with any issues concerning your parents. . glad they are
relatively close to the border for needs that may arise.
It so often seems the old wind changes direction, and so too does the answer and rules concerning 'it' ... thus the need to go with the flow and
accept it 'ni modo' amiga .. call me anytime .. L
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fishingmako
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I have heard that all meds are to be stopped from any mail box pick up in the States, you must bring them back in hand yourself with a prescription
stating so that you are the person it is for, again heresay?? another intervention on peoples lives, what is next?? people need their meds and have no
way but by somone picking them up for them.
You are right WOOOOSH.
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garynmx
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This was the main reason I moved from Cabo to Rosarito Beach. I could not get my meds anymore. Sometimes it would slip thru but Mail Box etc would
charge me $20.00 USD to give them to me. My insulin needles never got thru. I like Cabo better then Baja Norte but it was impossible to stay there
with my medical conditions. Now I just drive across border and pick up my meds at PO. It is really nice not to have to worry about getting them.
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Santiago
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| Quote: | Originally posted by jeans
I would think that with the number of retired Americans in MX this is a significant issue. If MX does not provide the needed medications, they should
not prevent legal residents from obtaining what they need to survive without resorting to the subterfuge which has been suggested through U2Us.
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jeans: Maybe try some internet boards from Guadalajara - I just can't believe that with the huge ex-pat population there that work-arounds are not in
place.
I have asked this question before to stunning silence but seems to me an enterprising med group in the states would join with one in Guadalajara,
patients would be seen in MX but the paperwork done in the US. We export all kinds of jobs to Mexico, why not this too?
With respect to certain drugs available in the US but not MX: does this mean that the drugs are not legally available at any price or that the ex-pat
just won't be reimbursed by the US insurance company? If the former, is this an issue of a drug not being approved for use or simply that the
manufacturer has not done whatever they are supposed to do in order to sell their product in MX?
Where do farMAcias (I used to pronounce it 'far-ma-CI-a' until last week's spanish class) get their drugs? Do they order from a private supply chain
or must they get their drugs from a government warehouse?
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