Carrying lot of prescription medications into the US

November 11, 2010 11:40 AM

What are the regulations regarding carrying large amount of prescription medications in the US by non-US citizen?

I am not an American citizen and moving to the US in Jan 2011. I am a patient of Ulcerative Colitis (for > 4 years) and Migraine (for >3 years). As a result, I am on heavy medication. I plan to carry about 3 to 6 months of stock, just in case if I fail to find a doctor who can accept me as a patient on the insurance that I will have.

My medication and daily dose is,
Balasalazide (9 capsules a day or 750mg x 9),
Azathioprine (3 tabs a day or 50mg x 3) and
Topiramate (4 tabs a day or 50mg x 4)
So if I calculate, my 6 month stock could look as if I am drug trafficker or something but my GI doc and neurologist both are going to give me my case reports, prescription and a letter stating that I need these medications to maintain the status of my conditions. So in theory, I will have everything that the authorities may need to look into.

I am going to declare everything at the border. What worries me most, I do not find any clear regulation in this regard and I can not afford to lose this medication, else I will end up in the hospital.

I wonder if anyone is familiar with such situations or have been through such scenarios. Or if any pharmacists can shed some light on legality of such situation?

Many thanks in advance.

posted by zaxour to Travel & Transportation (4 answers total)

I believe that all of these drugs are approved in the US. As long as you have a prescription and the other documentation you mentioned, you should be fine.

But, "If you have any questions as to whether a specific pharmaceutical may be imported into the United States, please contact the FDA, Division of Import Operations and Policy, at [phone]." (source)
posted by jedicus at 11:49 AM on November 11, 2010 [1 favorite]

Is it possible you could call U.S. Customs and ask?
posted by royalsong at 11:51 AM on November 11, 2010

Be sure to carry it all on the plane, don't check it in your luggage. I.e. don't check anything that you can't afford to have the airline lose, and clearly you can't afford to lose these medications.
posted by xueexueg at 12:45 PM on November 11, 2010

I wouldn't worry too much about it. None of these medications are controlled substances, which is what customs is primarily concerned about. If they are feeling suspicious, they might examine the pills, but I doubt they would do more than this. In the absolute worst case scenario, they will seize the pills for drug testing (you'll likely get most of them back eventually), but you have your prescription and can take it to a pharmacy and get a new supply to tide you over. That's the worst case scenario and I doubt it will happen, but even that isn't so bad. In short, welcome to the US!
posted by zachlipton at 1:41 PM on November 11, 2010