What You Must Know If You Are A Senior Traveling With Medicine
Seniors who travel with medicine need to take extra precautions to make sure their medicine travels with them. Some seniors can't travel without medicine, so it is essential that seniors learn how to label and pack their medications so they will be allowed to take them.
Air Security Regulations
Airline security regulations can change at any time, so consult security regulations at the airports you'll be flying in and out of. Generally speaking, seniors may travel with medicine in prescription bottles as long as the name on the prescription matches the name on the senior's boarding pass, and as long as the prescription is for pills, tablets or capsules.
That's right; seniors traveling with medicine in gel or liquid form - including insulin, cough syrup, and creams, are going to have some trouble getting through security, so they should allow even more extra time than they ordinarily would for air travel.
Contact The Airline Ahead Of Time
Seniors traveling with medicine in liquid or gel form should contact the airline well in advance of their flight. They should get a letter from their physician verifying the prescription and send that letter to the airline, along with the date and flight number of the senior's scheduled flight.
Seniors taking medicine on travels should be prepared to have their medicine inspected before they board any plane. Seniors should be sure to have a copy of their prescription or letter from their physician ready.
Should Traveling Seniors Check Their Medicine?
For years we have all been told not to pack our medication in checked luggage. With today's regulations, however, seniors must wonder whether they would be better off packing their liquid or gel medication in their luggage. The answer is still "no."
Medicine packed in checked luggage is subject to being stolen by any number of workers who handle the bags from one location to the other. If the senior's luggage gets lost, he or she will have to do without their medicine until the bags are found.
Carry A Backup Prescription
Before traveling, seniors who need medicine should ask their doctors for an extra prescription. If worse comes to worst and the senior's medicine is lost, stolen, or confiscated by airport security, the senior can take the prescription to a pharmacy at their destination and have the prescription refilled.
Nonprescription Medication
Seniors traveling to U.S. locations should consider leaving non-prescription medication at home and buying new supplies when they land at their destination. The cost of buying a fresh supply of the medicine is minimal compared to the hassle and inconvenience of having the medicine inspected and questioned.
