sueto - I wanted to address this yesterday but forgot. No one meant any disrespect to Canada or their drug stores. Here in the US, we've been hearing from people for a while that they get their drugs cheaper from Canada. I know of someone that did, and sent them an email a few months ago when my prescription insurance got maxed out and they made me pay 100% until Jan 1 when the insurance would kick in again. The person never got back to me; I actually thought about making a post here too. I wouldn't know the 1st place to look to find a legit place to buy meds from. Carla, that doctor is not doing you any favors. I have one doctor that I see once a year. I called the other day for a 30 day script because I get mine mail ordered. They called it in to my pharmacy. I don't doubt that had I asked for samples I would have gotten some.

mcpeg, I'm an American and certainly take no offense to your concern and I would agree totally if in your position. That said, I should add that I have problems with all the people coming here for free health care too. People come from Mexico to have children here to be covered by US care at taxpayer expense and to the detriment of other citizens. I don't think that's right. Our state has a more lenient welfare system than many others and we get busloads of people who come in for a weekend to make claims, collect payments and go home. I don't mind helping out, but I don't like being taken advantage of. The problem of course is the laws of our respective countries and states/provinces. Just like the US is too stupid to tax actors who make millions and have their residency elsewhere, including Canada ;) (Dan Akroyd, Michael J. Fox, Adam Sandler, etc) and pay no taxes here. I don't think that's right either. But we have a dyslexic dimwit in the, well, I won't get into politics, not appropriate. But I do think you are justifiably concerned about it and I for one, share your dissatisfaction, and you needn't be sorry for feeling that way.

Please do not buy drugs online. It's not safe and it's illegal. Online "Canadian" pharmacies are often not even located in Canada. The websites are an outright lie. And "pharmacies" located in Canada are not regulated like real pharmacies unless they actually do business in Canada with Canadian patients. If you want medications from Canada, go to a real physical pharmacy that dispenses to Canadian patients. And since drug names are different in different countries, make absolutely sure both the brand and generic name of the medication is written on the prescription as well as what it is for. That way if there are any questions, that information can be important for the pharmacist to determine if clarification is needed. For example, when Bextra was available in the US, it was a brand name anti-inflammatory medicine. In at least one European country that brand name was for blood pressure medicine, a completely different drug. Brand names are made up for recognition and marketing, while generic names are the chemical name for the medicine molecule, which can vary slightly from region to region but are pretty consistent. In addition, if he US regulations on importation and manufacturing keep our drug supply reasonably safe. We have, at least as of a few years ago, about a 2-3% counterfeit rate. Many other countries buy on the world market which has about 8-10% , or higher in some regions, rate. Drugs purchased online are even worse, as they are often completely outside the medical system of any country and completely unregulated. There was a great article in I think Health magazine if I remember correctly back about 6 or so years ago that followed an investigation of medicines purchased online. It was astounding how bad things were. And some of the "manufacturing" facilities they had pictures of I wouldn't step inside even with a whole truckload of bleach and sanitizer at my side! At the very least, any physical or online pharmacy that does not require an exam by a healthcare provider and an actual prescription should be avoided like the plague. Any online pharmacy that is not VIPPS registered should also be avoided. Please remember criminals lie, so any site claiming to be VIPPS registered should then be verified by searching the registry, not by linking through that website to verify! Working with your doctor or pharmacist for suggestions is helpful. If you use multiple pharmacies, PLEASE keep a list of ALL your medications and ask each pharmacy to enter them on your profile for screening. Paying out of pocket takes away the only screening tool the pharmacy has for seeing major interactions with meds from other places, IF your insurance company provides those alerts to them. Pharmacy shopping and paying cash puts a lot of responsibility on YOU to make sure your medications are safe, so do your best to keep everyone involved well informed. It's in your best interest.

DH has been getting his most expensive med from Pharmstore for many months now, thanks to juneroses' endorsement! Rexulti is made by Otsuka LTD. and imported by Otsuka Canada. The tablets come in the same sealed bottle we used to get from a local chain pharmacy. Only the cost is different -- a quarter of the $22/day we paid in the US. It arrives within a week of being ordered. Payment is direct withdrawal from our bank. It's prescribed by DH's psychiatrist, who monitors the effect. I can't wait to see what 10 drugs Medicare will announce being 'price negotiated' in September! This could mean the end of cheaper meds outside the US, as currently other countries' lower prices are subsidized by the high prices Big Pharma collects in the US. My expensive Revlimid was developed *from government research* by Glaxo. Their exclusive patent prevented marketing of the generic Lenalidomide for decades until last year. I was wait-listed for the generic in January and am only now getting it. It's still $18,000/month instead of $28,000/month retail. I still pay the whole $7400 annual drug deductible before the OOP drops to $3/month. My insurance still pays the remaining retail. They, not I, reap the benefit of the lower cost.