sandi_travelnut

My parents are taking a cruise where they'll be flying from DFW to Hethrow then to Barcelona. On the way home they leave from Athens to some NY airport then DFW. My Dad requires about 8 different meds daily and some of the bottles of pills are quite large. He would like to be able to use the "pill organizer" (the tray with little dividers for each day of the week)for his 2 week cruise.

Has anyone tried to carry this on w/ prescription pills in it? Does he HAVE to carry the individual bottles? If so, is there a size limit for a bottle full of pills so they can be carried on?

Thanks everyone.

LoveItaly

Hi sandi, here is the tsa website which will give you their legal requirements. http://www.tsa.gov/
Check out the lower left 3-1-1 for the information. I hope your parents have a wonderful trip.

Heimdall

As someone faced with a similar problem, I share your concern. It's not just TSA requirements, but the possibility that some overzealous customs agent in a foreign country will question what drugs are in a non-prescription container.

My recommendation would be to ask your pharmacist if the drugs he needs for his trip could be put in smaller bottles with the usual labels attached. I doubt that he would run into any problems with the pill organizer, but you never know. A certain aging actor was recently stopped trying to enter Australia with banned substances in his suitcase.

FainaAgain

Sandy, if the pills are real pills, not liquid-filled softgels, the 3-1-1 rule does NOT apply. This is for liquids/semi-liquids only.

Example: tylenol pill, regular or coated, fine, any reasonable amount. Tylenol softgel (liquid center) goes into that clear ziplock.

Lady

The rules say the pills have to be in original, labeled containers. I think medications are too important to take the chance that you can slip through with the organizer. The suggestion to talk to the pharmacist about smaller bottles is a good one.

kayd

The carry-on restrictions apply to liquids only, so there should be no problem getting pills through pre-flight security screening, regardles of quantity or what container they are in. Buried anywhere in the carry-on bag should be fine, no need to declare anything solid.

As for customs (smuggling) concerns on arrival, I've never seen anyone stop for inspection in Europe -- you just walk through the door marked "Nothing to Declare" and may not even notice that you have "gone through customs."

On your return to the U.S., where everyone has to stop at the customs desk, there is no interest in small quantities of medication for personal use. And you won't have much left by then anyway. If by some very very remote chance, meds in your traveo container might be questioned, you can pull out a pharmacy printout listing all your prescriptions (good to have in any case--for emergency personnel to consult, if some pills go down the drain and must be replaced, etc.)

enzian

The rules do not say that pills have to be in original prescription containers. Here's what it says for pills in your carry-on:

"We recommend, but not require, that passengers bring along any supporting documentation (ID cards, letter from doctor, etc.) regarding their medication needs. We also recommend, but not require, that the label on prescription medications match the passengers boarding pass. If the name on prescription medication label does not match the name of the passenger, the passenger should expect to explain why to the security officers. To ensure a smooth screening process, passengers are encouraged to limit quantities to what is needed for the duration of the flight."

I think this actually addresses liquid medication, not pills.

I always carry my prescription med in a pill organizer, and have never been asked about it. I do carry a copy of the prescription, but have never needed to show it.

Lady

Enzian, I stand corrected. Thought it was a rule. I'm pretty much a by-the-book-better-safe-than-sorry type of person and will probably continue with my bottles. If I tell DH it's not a rule, though, he'd digging out the organizer!

ira

Hi ST,

My Lady Wife puts all of her many diet supplements, RXs, etc into ziplock bags and labels each bag.

For the RXs, she pastes the label from the pharmacy onto the bag.

Her several thousand pills take up much less space this way.

As noted, in Europe you walk through the door that says "Nothing to Declare".

Your parents are unlikely to be stopped and questioned.

hetismij

It is neverthe less a good idea if your father has a list of his mediccations - giving the generic names, not the trade names. Should, God forbid, anything happen to him a doctor will need to know what medication he is taking, and the names can be different in Europe.

enzian

Lady---I won't tell your DH---mum's the word!

They certainly don't make it easy to figure out. And if the prescription is for a "controlled substance" (narcotic painkiller), it probably is a good idea to have it in the original container.

sandi_travelnut

Thanks everyone. Send them good thoughts for safe travels in April. We took them on their first European vacation in Dec 04 and now they're going on a Med Cruise to France, Italy and Greece. My Mom is beside herself and she said it was all my "fault".

Heimdall

"in Europe you walk through the door that says "Nothing to Declare"."

Going through the "Nothing to Declare" door doesn't make you immune from inspection. People occasionally get spot checked when walking through the "green lane" - customs inspectors are a suspicious lot, and have to meet their quotas.

As I said earlier, "I doubt that he would run into any problems with the pill organizer, but you never know." In the unlikely event that he were stopped, having the pills in a prescription container would simplify matters.

Incidentally, having a pharmacy printout of all the medications is a very good idea. Carry it in a separate bag from the medications, in case the meds get lost.