So I have an awesome house guest, who is visiting from Melbourne and will be staying through August 1st. He’s a really cool kid.
However - he apparently had a brain fart when he was packing, and left behind his antidepressants. :smack: He arrived on Monday afternoon (our time) and hasn’t had them since. (It’s now Thursday morning).
Ideally, we’d be able to get his parents to Fed Ex them over - except FedEx won’t ship medications. Pharmacies here won’t fill a Rx from a non-US doctor. I would like to get my friend back on his meds ASAP to 1) avoid withdrawals and 2) make sure he actually enjoys his stay here.
Has anyone ever shipped medication on an expedited basis from AU to US? What carriers will take it? How much of an issue will there be with Customs?
I’m not sure exactly what the medications are, but I’m fairly certain they’re not opiates or anything too strictly controlled.
If necessary we can have him see a US doctor and try to get a new Rx, but that may take some time - if we can just have 'em mailed, it’d be easier.
Hopefully someone knowledgable about this will help you, but in the meantime it might be worthwhile to call your local pharmacist and ask their advice.
Exporting prescribed medication
If you are taking medication overseas, you should contact the consulates or embassies of countries to be visited well before departure to confirm that the medicines and the quantities to be carried are permitted. It may also help in your dealings with Australian and overseas authorities if you have a prescription and a doctor’s letter explaining your medical condition and the medications, prescription and otherwise, that you are taking for it. Caution - taking or sending Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medicines overseas is illegal - unless it is for personal use. For more information contact Medicare Australia by telephone on 1800 500 147 or visit the website at www.medicare.gov.au.
The Australian Customs and Border Protection Service does not regulate the movement of medicine into or out of countries other than Australia. For further information please contact the consulate of the country you are travelling to.
Customs Information & Support Centre
My read of your post is that it’s getting urgent, so I’d say give up on getting the meds across, it’ll take days at least. He/she will have to pony up the cash and see a local doctor pronto for a US prescription.
My doctor would do it. Heck, my pharmacy might do it. They’ll definitely give me a few extra pills if I get into a bind with doctor’s visits. Antidepressants are not controlled substances since they have little immediate effect.
You should be able to get this to work. Going off of antidepressants too quickly can be bad: Google brain shivers.
You also have to fill out a customs form, to tell the US Customs people what’s being shipped. They might not like you shipping medication and saying that it’s something else.
He called his doctor last night (midafternoon to them) and spoke with the doctor’s assistant. He said that she told him that the doctor is on vacation, and that she sounded unwilling to help him.
If he goes to a doctor here and says “Okay, I’m on X X X and X, with Y dosages”, what are the odds that they’ll write him a Rx without a note from his doctor in AU?