Buying Drugs Abroad? Watch Out
There's no way to know how many travelers returning home from abroad tuck a few blister packs of prescription pills into their bags. Souvenirs of a visit to a local pharmacy, many drugs are often available without a prescription for just pennies a pill. And even if prescriptions are ostensibly required, travelers often find that local druggists are willing to bend the rules. Taking a chance is tempting. A 90-day supply of 20-milligram Lipitor tablets can be had for just $190 in Canada compared with $336 here, for example. With high drug costs eating into people's budgets at home, the siren call of a cut-rate diuretic or anti-inflammatory may be hard to resist.
By Michelle Andrews
22 May 2008