The sad reality is that law-abiding citizens must live in fear of overzealous law enforcement. I have found all manner of scrutiny applied to my stuff, from cursory to ridiculous. Every petty little official has their own take on how much of a Super Cop they are.
Here is an article from the Los Angeles Times last year:
If you're packing pills, take along proof that they're yours
Carrying medication in original bottles may be bulky, but that's the law. Yet many ignore it.
Kathleen Doheny LA Times July 16, 2006
BY now it's widely known Rush Limbaugh was stopped on his return from the Dominican Republic because he was carrying a bottle of Viagra that had another person's name on it. The label indicated the drug was for Limbaugh's doctor, a move made to protect Limbaugh's privacy, his doctor reportedly told authorities.
So far no charges have been filed against Limbaugh, but "the bottom line is, every prescription drug requires the drug be made out to the person taking it," But many travelers don't follow the letter of the law. Traveling with your medications in the original container, with the original labels with your name, can be impractical, especially if the medication comes in a big bottle or you are taking several prescription pills a day.
He doesn't always transport medicine in its original containers, he says. "I am not going to take six large bottles to go on a two-day trip," he says. "I put them in a smaller vial."
He's never had a problem, he says, even though he is diabetic and must take along insulin and syringes. He was asked about three years ago while going through an airport security line whether he was diabetic. He said he was, and that was the end of it, he says.
But if the medication is a controlled substance, such as narcotic painkillers, it is especially wise to keep the medicine in the original container with the label, Shepherd says. "The label on the vial is proof you have a prescription for the drug," he says.
The possibility of an accident is another good reason to keep medications in the original, labeled container, Brigner says. "Hospital personnel need to see quickly what medications you are on," she says. "And they can't with the day-of-the-week carriers." If you use them, take along a list of each medication's name, dose and why you take it, she suggests.
An alternative to traveling with pill minders: Ask your pharmacist when you order the medicine to divide it up into two smaller bottles and put a label on each, says Dr. Peter Galier, an internist at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and associate professor of medicine at UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine.
Or ask for a special supply in a smaller bottle to take on vacation, says Robert Gillies, a pharmacist for United Healthcare, a Minneapolis-based health plan. "Most health plans will allow you a vacation fill," he says, even if it's not time to reorder.
Policies vary. For instance, for Kaiser Permanente members, "it's possible to ask your pharmacist to give you a labeled, smaller bottle," says Michelle Ponte, a spokeswoman. Members who order medications by mail may have to ask their doctor to help them do this, she says. If the refill date for a medicine occurs while a member is due to be on vacation, the individual can request the medicine early, she says.
Another plan, WellPoint, does not have a vacation fill program, but a "prescription override" is possible so you can fill it early if you would run out while gone, says Leslie Porras, a representative. Travelers should check with their health plan's member services department to find out its policies.
What if you are returning to the United States with drugs that require a prescription here but not in the country where you're traveling?
"So long as it is not a controlled substance and is meant for personal use, there really is no issue with that," says the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Cirillo.
But for controlled substances, such as the tranquilizer Valium or the painkiller OxyContin (oxycodone), "You need a prescription. The bottle has to be labeled and made out to that traveler," she says.
The FDA has a policy for "personal importation" of drugs that "provides an avenue for patients with serious medical conditions, for which effective treatment may not be available in the United States, to import products available in other countries," according to a document released June 6. Among other conditions, the traveler must attest that the drug is for his or her own use, generally no more than a three-month supply, and give the treating physician's contact information.
