Re: Taking medicine out of country?

On 7/1/2009 9:12 PM  Rosalie B. while holding "Agent 99", exclaimed:

On my return from Jamaica to Newark, my carry on was searched. I had all
my Rx in their original bottles.  But I had some OTC stuff in a daily
pill caddy.  I was asked to accompany a guard into an office where I was
questioned by a Fed.  A scraping was taken from each of my OTC pills.  
The scrapings were tested. Only after the results came back negative was
I released. I was given an official apology with the explanation that
they were acting only to stem the tide of drugs entering the US
illegally. I thought about it as I walked towards ground
transportation.  I was returning from Jamaica, my hair was long, I had a
beard, I wore distressed jeans (faded jeans with strategic rips in
them), and a souvenir Bob Marley T-shirt without any Marijuana
illustrations on it. Guess I fit some sort of profile.  But saying this
does not imply that none of you might be randomly searched.

I've never been challenged and we usually have the medicines in a
weekly dispensing box.  I take copies of the prescriptions with me,
but no one has ever asked.

However - I also take a signed notarized statement from both of my
grandchild's parents that I have their permission to be taking their
child out of the country, and only once has anyone even asked about it
and that was when we were changing planes in Heathrow.

My mother was given a hard time when going through Checkpoint Charley
with my daughter in the 70s, but that was then.

I can see the logic of this advice, but I'm wondering if anyone
has ever actually been challenged.

My wife and I have traveled all over Europe and South America
as well as Canada and Mexico and never been challenged about
the contents of our medical kits.  We've always had unlabeled
bottles of vitamins and supplements with us.

Coming back to the U.S. we've seen drug sniffing dogs, but I
think they're trained to sniff for specific illegal drugs (we
don't use those!)  The dogs have never had a problem with our
bags.

Has anyone experienced a challenge, or is the requirement for
prescription documentation purely hypothetical?

    Alan

PeterL, you just lucked out, this is not good advice.

All medicine should be kept in original containers and this is true for
prescription or OTC meds/supplements.

sue

No need.  I put my pills in little zip lock plastic bag, each one with
a label.  No one ever checks.  I've been to Europe, Asia and Canada
with them.

We're going on a road trip to Canada next week.
We'll have the usual bunch of medicine that those of us  not young
anymore have.

Should we be sure to have all the bottles the medicine came in or will
the normal pill boxes work?

Thanks

Jack.