MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
I use pharmacychecker.com and they're sort of the 'gold standard' for checking the veracity of online pharmacies.
I have gotten quite a few meds this way- I always look here. If Costco or another US pharmacy isn't listed, I will also call Costco or Wal-mart, as I've found that those are the two cheapest pharmacies in the US. Drugstore.com and some other online-only US pharmacies are sometimes a little bit cheaper, but it's not always consistent.
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
feel free to PM me if you have questions about finding other 'stuff' like this from online pharmacies- I've looked into a few other options (like Rocephin pricing, which I'm NOT finding a lot of easy answers for), and have a sort of mental list of what meds are cheap where, like the Russian pharmacies that Coltman dug up.
All of this stuff is still not without risks of contamination, etc, but pharmacies that have been verified by Pharmacychecker are at least legitimate businesses that won't rip you off.
There are probably lots of scams out there that list the Pharmacychecker logo on their website- do verify that they are indeed the real thing by actually looking them up on pharmacychecker.
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
I am actually still looking for places to order overseas European "Bicillin" (the type that's a powder with a separate vial of sterile water). One of the Russian pharmacies has it, but I'd like to know where else folks have ordered it as the Russian place isn't verified in any way.
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posted
That Russian site pharmacy1010.com lists a generic Bicillin from France at $11.95 for a 2.4m vial in addition to the stuff from Russia which is much cheaper. (a 3.6m vial of the Russian product sells for $1.95)
It also lists a generic Rocephin at $4.95 a 1 gram vial.
I am not using any abx at present, but I am curious if anyone has tried ordering from them and what their experience was.
Posts: 714 | From San Antonio TX | Registered: Oct 2004
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
I think the 'bicillin' there is just the same thing as extencillin= ie, it's not the pre-filled Tubex and vials like we get in the US, but it's the two-part powder-and-water version.
For the same IM penicillin, there are several other sources. I am going to call Farmamondo in Switzerland to see what their prices are (they're closed now of course, time zone):
https://www.farmamondo.com search function there seems to be broken, several members have used them for extencilline in the past.
I'm thinking that if I have to go on Rocephin (it's looking like it) and somehow come up with money, I want to buy a few of their ceftriaxone vials and trying to pay to have them tested. It's $300 a test, I've looked into it via a US infusion products provider (they told me that they don't do the test themselves but said they could pass my sample along to the same lab that tests the USA product that they carry). Obviously that would only be one sample, and it wouldn't give a huge amount of information about any other batches of ceftriaxone that they might carry, but it would help.
If anyone finds this post in the future and wants to do exactly what I'm talking about (ie submit a generic overseas ceftriaxone sample for testing) please PM me and I'll give you details about how to do it. The more samples we get tested from a particular manufacturer, the safer this will be for those of us desperate enough to consider buying overseas medication.
Also, I think that USA generic ceftriaxone is only $17/2 grams, saline included, through Infuserve- the cost comes in with other supplies and of course nursing care if you're not doing your own dressing changes. So if we're talking about $10/2 grams of risky Russian ceftriaxone, it may not be that big of a savings anyway.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
Big update:
I just called Costco because AmandaM gave me the tip that vials of Rocephin are inexpensive there.
It was $5.60/vial for the 1 gram doses (normal dosing for Lyme is 2 gram/day dosing, I believe), which is comparable to the Russian pharmacy we're discussing above. They can not get it in 2 gram vials.
Obviously there are a lot of other costs associated with IV med prep but this seems a little cheaper than what I've been hearing.
I have a request out to an infusion co for a quote for the 'rest' of the stuff needed, and will let you know if the Costco connection turns out to be the cheapest way to do things.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
posted
Wow, it has really come down in price. That is good news for those here who depend on it.
It seems like the Bicillin is the one that is obscenely priced for what it is. What are you guys having to pay for it now? Has the situation improved any from a couple of years ago?
[ 02-04-2010, 06:22 PM: Message edited by: James H ]
Posts: 714 | From San Antonio TX | Registered: Oct 2004
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
Last summer I priced 'real' bicillin at $510/10 vials at Costco. Obviously, various sources of the overseas penicillin are just a few dollars a dose.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
I went to Walmart & they said my prescription would be about $120-130. They didn't even have it...
I checked West Coast Drugs & it was about $11.00 for about 3 times more than I need. I asked them a question via e-mail & they replied in a few hours...
I don't know where they are actually located. These off shore drug companies often have addresses in other places then where they are located. They say they are in Mauritius... ?
Posts: 7772 | From Northeast, again... | Registered: Oct 2006
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
I've tried onlinepharmaciescanada.com and canadadrugs.com (whom I found on pharmacychecker.com). Both of them send me what I order and it seems to be the right drugs.
This overseas pharmacy game is definitely a bit scary since counterfeit and contaminated drugs do exist.
I looked at the West Coast Drugs site and couldn't really tell much about it. It's a no-prescription place (or they're offering 'free prescription with consultation', which is the same thing). I think that's always going to be a scary 'buyer beware' situation.
Most of the regular antibiotics I looked at on Westcoastdrugs.com didn't look that much cheaper than what I have found though Pharmacychecker (and in the case of Bactrim was more than I pay in the US). I've found similar pricing discrepancies in the pharmacychecker.com-verified places, too- some things are cheaper and some are just as much as in the US.
I think that all of the ones on pharmacychecker require a prescription. While that alone doesn't mean that the place is legit and that the medication they're selling is legitimate, it's less likely to be legit if it's a no-script venture.
Lastly, I want to remind people that if you're worried about online purchasing of anything, it may be safer to use a temporary pre-paid debit card (like from Wal-Mart- they cost $3 plus whatever amount of money you loaded on it). That way, if the website is a total scam that's solely designed to steal your credit card information and rob you, at least you haven't lost more than just the amount of the purchase.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
sparkle7
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 10397
posted
Yes, it's risky... You don't know if the drugs are fake/counterfeit, out dated or contaminated.
The Canadian place I called said I had to open an account, pay, fax the prescription & then the drugs would be sent from UK & they took 3 weeks... The price wasn't bad, though.
It really significant about the differences in price from place to place & country to country. I can get aciclovir cream in UK over the counter for about $9. Here, I need a prescription & it's $90...
It's really criminal...
Posts: 7772 | From Northeast, again... | Registered: Oct 2006
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