I always fill up our "pill boxes" with our meds, esp if a quick trip, so as not to haul all of our prescription bottles and vitamin supplement bottles. I read somewhere (?) that it would be more difficult to get thru security without the original containers...is this true?

No. Both my husband and I always carry a few of our pills separate from the original containers. We just wrap them in plastic wrap and put in either pocket or purse. Same with vitamins. My husband always puts them in a small, unlabeled container or baggie. In all of his years of business (and personal) travel, he's never had a problem.

One reason for NOT taking prescription meds out of original container...if you somehow lose your pills...a local pharmacy can refill for you with much less hassle than your having to call Dr.'s office to get another script {especially in summer, weekends,etc}.

And though not likely to happen, if you are using controlled substance meds and get stopped for other reason by security...you technically could have problems if the meds were not in original container.

And for one more thought...A lot of meds look the same. It is was easier to take the wrong pill, especially with the hustle and bustle of travel. I know that I thought I could tell my meds apart, but did in fact take the wrong one recently! No harm, but still....

That said, I do take my meds out of bottle BUT I ask pharmacy to print out a list of the meds I take {dose, Dr name -- the info on the label} and carry that with me.

Hope this helps...
Debi

Debi points our something that I failed to mention and that is bringing a print out of your meds -- that is something we always do.

Along with your eyeglass prescription!!!

If you wear glasses, bring along another pair in case you step on them in your sleep like my husband did on a transatlantic flight, hehehe.

The only ones I would leave in container is you have any controlled type prescription (narcotic component).

I cannot say what might happen in the airport, but I can tell you in Florida, you could be criminally charged if you cannot prove YOU, not your spouse or child, have a prescription for certain medications. I have seen many arrests in the Panhandle for possession, whether actual or constructive, of a controlled substance without a prescription. I would advise you to keep any pain medication, anti-anxiety, or anti-seizure medication in the original container. And, just because it belongs to a family member doesn't mean you can legally have possession. If you can prove YOU were prescribed the medication, the charge is usually dropped. However, you could be arrested and jailed until you can prove otherwise. That would certainly inconvenience you on your trip.

As I have commented before, my doctor of 30 years who travelled all over the world always told us to keep any prescribed medicine in the original container. If I have had to travel with a prescribed medicine I have done this. I have never wanted to find out if it was "absolutely" necessary or not.

I might be in the minority but I think some of you are over-reacting. I've been travelling internationally for over 40 years by planes, trains and automobiles and for as far back as I can remember have always carried my prescription drugs in those handy dandy plastic "7-day" containers (wrapped in zip-lock bags as added protection against spillage) and never, repeat, never had a problem with security, customs or any other law inforcement agency.

A couple of my medications are technicaly controlled substances -- how would people at the airport know this? They are generic and don't bear a brand name or tell-tale shape.

Can you say "Rush Limbaugh??"

Really though, I think a bigger issue is loss of meds w/ no containers to get emergency refills or mistaking the identity of the pills {i.e. as fishee said "they are all generic with no markings"}

And I am sure 99.999% of the time, no one gets stopped by security, but again, why risk it?
Debi

I put mine in teeny tiny ziplock bags. Most of the time, I can peel the label off the original container and affix to the baggy, or put it inside if it isn't sticky enough.

Like said above, you might lose them or ruin them - I once dropped mine in a sink full of water - and it is MUCH easier to replace if you have the label with dates/names/prescription number.

BTW, even generics have markings on the pills to identify them. Definitely don't carry controlled substances without the label.

Do you guys still get written prescriptions from your doctors? Mine only asks for a pharmacy name/address and I pick the pills up.

Can someone explain how having the label (or the original container) helps get a replacement if you lose your pills while traveling? I thought prescriptions were only good in the state in which the doctor is licensed. But then, I know some can be filled on-line, or even in Canada. How does this work?

Like most people, I get my meds refilled by mail for three months at a time. They always put the pills in huge bottles and have refused to ship smaller containers with labels. I will certainly not take a half dozen jugs in a overnight carryon!! Keeping a list of prescriptions with you could be a mitigating factor if you were challenged because technically, it's not how TSA wants you do it. But good grief, can you imagine the scenes at the x-ray machines if every single medication in a carryon were scrutinzed to that degree? The number of over-the-counter drugs I keep in one small bottle in my purse at all times! Rush was coming through customs anyway, not just security when he got busted. I wouldn't worry about your legitimate scripts being challenged, labeled or not!

I'm leaving for 5 weeks plus, so I called Costco and asked for partial prescriptions. I carefully said how many pills of each of my three meds (35 of two of them and 70 of the one I take twice a day) I wanted and told them to put them in the smallest bottles possible. So when I go to pick them up, they filled the full prescription -- 90 of the two and 180 of the other (which comes in a bottle roughly the size of a garbage can!
So forget it. I'm counting out what I need and put them in other containers. Let them question me if by some strange coincidence I get stopped.

Don't be an idiot like me, though, and count out exactly how many you will need...then unexpectedly have to extend your trip by 3 days, as we did this May. That was a first, and a lesson learned!

I put my blood pressure medication in one of the aforementioned 7 day thingies. As others have mentioned, I get 90 days worth at a time. Frankly, since insurance wouldn't pay again if I were to lose it, I couldn't afford to take the whole thing along. I do, however, always take along two or three extra pills.

I do not believe the security people care one way or another. They're responsible for the safety of the flight, not what you're bringing.

Like tekwriter says, it's a different matter when travel internationally where you are subject to customs inspection.