# Canadian Pharmacies **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 22, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-pharmacies/170397 "2003-04-22T19:40:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aeropl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@aeropl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aeropl)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-pharmacies/170397/1 "2003-04-22T19:40:28Z")
Is it illegal for an American to buy drugs from an online Canadian pharmacy? The stores say yes, but they might be lying. This is provided you have been written a prescription, of course. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2003, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-pharmacies/170397/2 "2003-04-22T19:46:21Z")
Yes it is illegal… but lots of people do it and few are ever prosecuted for it. The reason is that drugs approved for sale in Canada are not necessarily approved for sale in the US. And the FDA can’t guarantee the quality of drugs sold outside the US. I can’t cite the law specifically… but I heard about this recently on NPR. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2003, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-pharmacies/170397/3 "2003-04-22T20:00:29Z")
Works both ways too. My mom had to go south of the border to help take care of my dying granny. My mom’s prescription ran out and she had a really tough time refilling it (which would have had disasterous consequences) – American pharmancies can not fill prescriptions filled out by Canadian doctors. Same reason: Canadian doctors are not licenced to practice in the U.S. so the prescription isn’t “legally” acceptable. (My mom got things sorted out when her doctor faxed over stuff to a U.S. doctor who verified her condition and was able to write a prescription.) ---
**Author:** ![LanceUSMC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/0ea827/32.png) [@LanceUSMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LanceUSMC)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2003, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canadian-pharmacies/170397/4 "2003-04-22T20:02:16Z")
I am not sure if it is necessarily illegal. Purchasing some types of drugs online is illegal. I believe you could legally purchase, say, Viagra (big drug advertised on the internet) on the internet because it is a legal drug in the United States, as long as it has the same ‘chemical balance’ as the one in the US. But there are dangers in it. If you have a valid prescription, that eliminates one danger, but they do not have to go by FDA guidlines, as pointed out already. But there are cases where some of our pharmacists have diluted drugs, so who knows? Check out the following for FDA FAQ: [http://www.fda.gov/oc/buyonline/faqs.html](http://www.fda.gov/oc/buyonline/faqs.html)