Don't think for a minute that the security people don't sometimes make an issue -- rare as that may be. I've seen them stop people and make them open all their meds and make an issue. My favorite was security between Turkey and Greece, where I stood in line watching them give some poor girl a whole lot of grief about everything. My favorite was when they started "tasting" her body powder, as if it were a stash of cocaine. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

A pharmacy can refill a script from a labeled container. They will still have to call original pharmacy to verify, but will refill. And no, your insurance most likely will not pay for it...BUT I cannot miss my daily med for thyroid. I would gladly pay for the emergency refill rather than deal with the consequences of missing meds.

And if you don't have container, trying to get hold of your physician under emergency situations may not always work { they take vacations too} especially for meds taken on a daily basis.

Debi

Experience is the best teacher.

Husband & I were ambushed by the local Maori thugs at Huka Falls Park in New Zealand.
EVERY local knows that if you leave your RV in the parking it is fair game for the thugs to mug.

Smashed and grabbed small overnight bag with medications. Medications gone!!!
Reported to rental co who directed us to nearby window repair place and to file a Police Report. When the Officer asked me what was in the bag (being a Nurse) I said my Drugs. Of course the Police man about fainted on the spot thinking I was a drug dealer who had turned themself in!!!

I quickly showed them my Nurse ID and businness card as well as my personal Dr MD business card. Whew..no jailtime

Next stop was a New Zealand clinic. I had the Police report and the MD and I reconstructed the equvilent of the US meds into New Zealand meds. (only my RN background allowed me to do this effectively..most people would not know how.)

I paid $5.00 US for the clinc visit.

Ah but the New Zealand Pharmacy was over $500.00 for 4 meds..you see the cost of replacing the meds is horrific.

I did file a claim with out car insurance and health plan once back in the US and between the 2 Ins co received full reimbursement.
Lesson learned. I now carry meds in an original bottle, or if not, a duplicate of the Pharmacy RX with the Pharm RX tele number, and my MD business card.

As I said lesson learned..

oh and if anyone goes to New Zealand and suffers a crime..the New Zealand goverment sends you a leterr saying so sorry and please see a Psychiatrist at your own expensse!!!!

Never take exactly what you need! Always carry a few extra and put those in a location.

Well, since sumreknot is flying domestic I don't think she has to worry about being ambushed in New Zealand.

My husband probably takes 15 different medications. They are all in his weekly dosage container. In 40 years of travel and many times internationally he has NEVER been questioned--EVER NEVER.

In all of my years of flying, I have only had a question once, well, my husband did. He carried a pain pill in his pocket for the airplane ( bad back) ..I always carry pills in pill boxes in my purse, prescription bottles in my carry on...I am a walking pharmacy ( it is all " just in case" meds) and no one has ever given us a second look. Once my husband explained the pill, we were sent on our way :)

Actually, I guess in terms of having the bottle but not taking <b>all</b> of the medication along, the smart thing may be to leave only what you need for the trip (plus two or three, of course) in the bottle and leave the rest in another container <b>at home</b>.

At least I guess that would work for me as my pills are so small that even a 90 day supply is in one of the small size pharmacy bottles. May not be an option for those with larger pills and a 90 day supply.

seetheworld... I guess my point was missed...the point I was sharing was a larger concern than just flyimg domestic or international but rather the traveler needs to be prepared to ID the meds.

Medication ID is important not just if questioned at the airport or law enforcement but also for replacement if lost or stolen.

I always transfer my meds to ziplocs and then put the name on the front but I also enclose the paper prescription info that comes seaparately from the bottle. So each bag essentially has proof of my Rx and all the info and it is just a flat piece of paper. I get my Rx at Sav-on in Ca which is now part of CVS and they still have thre sheets with each med. Has worked fine for us. Those huge bottle are just too much to haul on a 2-3 week vacation.

JAR, your point was not missed.

Our Amex card also provides for medication replacement. We've never, ever had to use it. But it's important to have the ID but in our case, we don't get our scripts filled at the local Pharmacy, but through mail order. The nice thing about that is their available 24/7.

...ignore spelling error, please...

If your concern is about taking large bottles - No law says that your druggist has to put pills in a bottle. Before you travel, ask him/her to put them in a small medicine envelope with a label.

I have never been questioned about my meds in many years of traveling. Unless you are Rush Limbaugh, they have more important things to worry about than a few pills. ((*))

I realize that the OP aksed about pill boxes in the context of airport security. However, my reply about criminal prosecutions was meant to educate about the &quot;possible&quot; consequences. I, too, have traveled for many years without being being questioned about my medications, but I know first hand how many folks are questioned and arrested for having certain prescription medication without a presciption. I am an assistant public defender, and every week I see where a person is arrested after being pulled over for a minor traffic stop, such as inoperable tail light, speeding, failure to yield etc. It is common in my area for the police to ask for permission to search your car even when they have no probable cause. (If you consent, they don't need probable cause.) They usually do this to young people and tourists, but it can happen to anyone. The usuual scenario is an unmarked pill bottle, envelope, or plastic bag is found containing an unknown substance. Law enforcement are trained to identify even generic medications. If they cannot identify the medication on the spot, they will call a friendly local pharmacist, who can identify the pill/capsule over the telephone. Usually the pill is valium, xanax, percocet, hydracodone, ambien, ritalin, oxycotin, etc. If the driver or passenger cannot produce a valid RX, they are arrested and taken to jail, where they are held until first appearance the following afternoon. I know this because our office has an attorney present at first appearances every day of the year, and we see this over and over.

thanks gracie for the info -- if someone were to hand over the phone number of their doctor to a cop, I assume it wouldn't go any futher?

i didn't think xanax or ambien were controlled... ?

Xanax I believe IS controlled, Ambien isn't.
Debi

As far as what constitutes a &quot;controlled substance&quot; in Florida, you must read chapter 893, Florida Statutes. &quot;Controlled substance&quot; means any substance named or described in Schedule I-V of section 893.03. I mentioned the &quot;pills&quot; most commonly mentioned in police reports from off the top of my head.
fishee -- I truly doubt that any of the law enforcement in my area would go to the trouble of calling a doctor. What I usually see happen is that a family member brings proof to the State Attorney's office and then the matter in dropped. But, if someone is stopped and arrested on a Friday night, in my county, they would be first appeared before a judge on the following day. The judge would set a bond, and if the person could not make the bond, he would remain in jail. The judge would not even consider whether the person had a valid RX -- that would have to wait. Our judges don't want to deal with that issue at First Appearance. And, the State Attorney's office is not open on the weekend, so the family member could not present proof of an RX until Monday morning.
Please don't think I am bashing law enforcement or the courts. I am simply stating what usually happens in my area. Most Fodorites will never have a negative encounter with law enforcement. However, you need to know that it can and does happen quite often to young folks, tourists, and people who just don't &quot;look right.&quot;

First to Neopolitan: I spoke with my pharmacy today (a &quot;by mail company&quot;) and they told me that they had a minimum sized container (which they have been sending me that I thought was HUGE) and that it must be large enough to enable the label to fit on it without overlapping. Maybe your pharmacy problem is the same?

Also, though I did not expect a useful response, I did email TSA about the 'original container' situation. Among other jargon in their form letter, they said:

&quot;TSA encourages passengers to ensure medications are in their original packaging, with professionally printed labels or pharmaceutical labels. This is a recommendation to assist travelers with the screening process; however, this is not a requirement.&quot;

DH intends to take his 14 day pill organizer filled for the appropriate number of days and the labels for his meds which he has affixed to index cards.

I also emailed the airline, but have had no response from them.

Woops...he also intends to take that letter from TSA.

I never take anything in the original container. (too big). I do take meds in little sample bottles that I have accumulated. So what`s written on the bottle isn`t whats in it. So who`s to know? No one has ever even looked at the bottles. Even if I did have samples, which I have had for lunesta, there is no prescription involved. By the way, being a nurse, we have patients who live in Calif, and I live in Nv. Controlled substances can`t be filled out of state, even with a prescription, and we have to warn patients to get them filled before they go home.