If you were looking at imported generic versions of the same medications that you take in the US, then pharmacy mark-ups (including tax) for imported generics are between 20-150%, compared with international reference prices. Other pharmacies may have cheaper prices than Bangkok Drugs, and Thai-made versions of the generics are cheaper than imported versions.Originally Posted by maump
maump,
I'm sure you're aware that the cost of prescription drugs in the U.S. is higher than any other country in the world. This is because the pharmaceutical industry, which is the largest industry in the U.S., provides huge cash donations to U.S politicians who don't ever want to put controls over the cost of prescription drugs for fear that the donations will stop. Plain and simple.
The article I've linked below, says that Thailand has some of the cheapest prices in the world for some generic and branded products. Unsurprisingly, the results show staggeringly high prices for many of the same drugs in the US.
The only thing I used a Thai pharmacy for are band aids and boner boosters - and both cost a quarter of the price as in the U.S.
https://www.pacificprime.co.th/blog/...ice-disparity/
If one has medical insurance in USA the cost of drugs can be very inexpensive. Also one can use discount cards at supermarkets, etc, where the cost of drugs are again inexpensive.
I am not looking for imported generics, just generics. my medications are very common, long time generics. here is what I found based on comparing Bangkok online drugs store and cash at Costplusdrugs.com. NO insurance
some of you old guys are taking these...... are these the kind of prices you pay?
Comparison for 90 day supply from USA cash pharmacy Delivery $5 (total order):
Dilatrend [Carvedilol] 6.25 mg [Sheet of 10 tablets] ฿190.00 x 18 = ฿3420 / 90 day USA $11.40 /180 or ฿419
Ezetrol [Ezetimibe] 10 mg [Sheet of 10 tablets] ฿550.00 x 9 = ฿4950 USA $8.40/90 ฿309
Rosuvastatin Sandoz 20 mg [Box of 28 tablets] ฿910.00 x 3 = ฿2730 USA $6.60/90 ฿243
Ramipril (generic ACE inhibitor) Not listed online in Thailand? USA $7.50/90 or ฿276
Sildenafil Sidegra [Sildenafil] 100 mg [Box of 4 tablets] ฿180.00 USA $10.20/90 100mg or ฿375
CIalis generic Not listed online in Thailand USA 90 x 20 mg 12.40 or ฿456
The Thai generic of Ramipril is called Ramicard.
As a non-American national, I was interested/surprised at the prices you quoted for your medications from Costplusdrugs.com having, like others, always assumed that people in the US paid exorbitant prices for their medications - with or without insurance. Costplusdrugs, however, is not representative of US pharmacies, is it?
It started business (as Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company) only in January 2022, i.e., it is less than 12 months old. It is intended to manufacture and distribute its own generic drugs, thus skipping the middlemen with the intention of "disrupting the pricing of as many drugs as we possibly can" and "disrupt the drug industry and to do our best to end ridiculous drug prices" (https://costplusdrugs.com/mission/). According to Forbes, Mark Cuban's "Real Time Net Worth as of 9/5/22 is $4.6 Billion, and he ranks #578 in the world today" (https://www.forbes.com/profile/mark-...h=62b4a8ff6a04). The firm does not accept medical insurance payments.
Costplus works with a "trusted fulfillment partner, Truepill" that "provides best-in-class pharmacy services" (https://costplusdrugs.com/providers/). Truepill states that "in 2019, we were proud to be featured in the Forbes “Next Billion-Dollar Startup” list (https://truepill.com/company).
The answer to your repeated question, therefore, is that Thai drugstores cannot compete in selling generic medications - imported or otherwise - at lower costs than a single, new, US-based pharmaceutical company with a billionaire founder and a trusted fulfillment partner that is also in the billionaire class. I am sure, however, posters - American and otherwise - will be interested to learn whether Costplus Drugs makes overseas deliveries.
I was always under the assumption (right or wrong) that individuals could carry up to a 90 day supply of prescription medications for their own personal use when traveling abroad, although shipping or mailing prescription drugs to another country was illegal. I could be wrong.
Mailing drugs to Thailand is not permitted, although people do it.
People can carry their personal prescriptions with them. I carry more than the allowed amounts (whatever that may be) and never questioned, which is a common practice.
There is no hard and fast rule about how much medication travelers can take with them. National laws vary but are generally in the range of 30 to 90 days of medication for travelers' personal consumption, and may include differing amounts depending on whether the medication is or is not accompanied by a physician's prescription. Similarly, countries may have laws allowing the importation (i.e., having them shipped from abroad) of medications under specified conditions.
However, carrying some common OTC medications containing opioid-derivatives such as tramadol and codeine, etc., can get you imprisoned in place like Greece, Dubai, etc., unless you are also carrying a prescription. Even carrying any prescription drugs containing an opioid-derivative can get you into trouble, e.g., a British women was arrested in Egypt when airport Customs found several hundred Tramadol painkillers in her luggage.
Thai embassy websites publish information on travel with prescription medicines into and out of Thailand, including the maximum in each medication you can only bring. They have to be in their original packaging, though.
As countries post information online about what can and cannot be taken into a country, it make sense to do some research before traveling. I understand that staying in Bangkok or Bali prisons is not a pleasant experience.
Dodger (September 7th, 2022)
Other than a couple Xanax and Ambien for plane sleeping from very old prescriptions... I don't ever carry anything interesting..... Unless prescription cialis and testosterone are a problem.. I even bought a new suitcase for returning from Colombia. the old one was damaged (courtesy of Avianca) and i was afraid of marijuana smell and dogs.
This is an example of where prescription medications permitted in one country are strictly controlled in another. I believe Xanax and Ambien are classified as Class 4 drugs in the US, but American classifications do not apply elsewhere (which often comes as a surprise to some, I believe). Even carrying US OTC medications containing Codeine or Tramadol, for example, can land you in trouble in countries such as Greece, Egypt, Dubai - even if you're only in transit.
Both Xanax (and its generic Alprazolam) and Ambien (or Zolpidem or Zopiclone) are controlled substances in Thailand. They are legally available only on doctor's prescription, and only from pharmacies with a special license to fill such prescriptions. No pharmacy will sell it to you without a prescription (probably from a Thai medical practitioner). They, and you, will be fined if they sell it to you. Similarly, Valium, Rohypnol, etc., cannot be sold to you without a prescription. They are all classed as narcotic drugs. Thailand has strict regulations about who can take these drugs into Thailand (e.g., people going there fore medical treatment), and how much they can import (30-days supply).
Other countries, such as the UK, Egypt, also control the import of these drugs by travelers. Australia goes as far as requiring medical practitioners to inform the Department of Health when prescribing alprazolam to a patient who requires a prescription for a long period. This must be done for each patient and only one practitioner can prescribe the medication for the patient at any one time. Alprazolam, Zolpidem and Zopiclone are all Category 4 medications in Taiwan and very tightly controlled.
Traveling with "very old prescriptions" is not advised. I don't know if it is a peculiarity of US prescriptions but those issued in other countries often have a use-by date. A standard prescription in the UK is valid for 6 months from the date on the prescription (unless the medicine prescribed contains a controlled medicine). Australian prescriptions last 12 months, I believe. Mine in Taiwan cover 28 days of medication and then expire, though I get three consecutive prescriptions at one time. If you are using very old prescriptions, then generally the amount of medication you bring must be consistent with the amount stated on the prescription.
Part of my job before I retired involved briefing business people being assigned abroad on what to do and what not to do, e.g., business etiquette and so on. It also included advice on healthcare related matters and what medications they could and could not take with them into other countries. Taking medication to help sleep while flying was one of the issues discussed, depending on the length of the flight. For example, use a long-acting medication like Ambien on a short flight is not advisable because you could find yourself too dazed to take care of yourself during an emergency or when you arrive at your destination. If you really want to sleep while flying, melatonin is said to be a better option.
With regard to being "afraid of marijuana smell and dogs," you were probably wise to buy a new suitcase. I know of a case where an American exchange student was stopped at Chubu Centrair International Airport in Japan and detained for three days because a sniffer dog detected the smell of the marijuana cigarette he had smoked before boarding his trans-Pacific flight.
christianpfc (September 7th, 2022), splinter1949 (September 8th, 2022)
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