If you have tried to buy brand name medicine in the US, you know that prices can be unbelievable. Most generic drugs are cheap by comparison. Imagine trying to buy a box of Kleenex only to discover that the cost had risen to $85. The house brand might not be as soft, but at $1.79 you might opt for the “generic” facial tissue. Is it possible to get brand name drugs from Canada at an affordable price? The brand name Wellbutrin XL 300 could cost over $2,500 a month in the US. You won’t believe what the same exact brand name antidepressant costs in Canada.
How Can You Get Brand Name Drugs from Canada?
This reader has a very reasonable question:
Q. Can a United States physician prescribe to a Canadian pharmacy? I take Wellbutrin XL 300 and the price is absolutely outrageous in the US. The generic does not behave the same as the brand. I don’t doubt that there is 300 mg in the generic pills, but the way the drug is released is the problem.
My wife also pays a lot for brand name Toprol XL to control high blood pressure. She says the generic metoprolol also has a release mechanism issue.
A. A doctor in the US used to be able to fax prescriptions directly to a Canadian pharmacy. Patients could also attach a photograph or scan their prescriptions to an online pharmacy.
Prices for brand name Toprol XL could average about $58 a month. In Canada the same brand name prescription might average $50 for a three months’ supply.
You are right about the price of Wellbutrin XL 300. We found prices over $2,500 per month in the US. You could purchase this same brand-name antidepressant from a Canadian pharmacy for a bit over $74 for a month’s supply.
The October 22 Surprise!
Sadly, though, there is a strong possibility that you will not be able to acquire medications from Canada or any other country besides the U.S. starting on October 22, 2026. That’s because the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) folks and the FDA will be blocking mail-order imports from Canada and other countries.
The effect of this action will be to cut Americans off from affordable medicines from abroad. It could have devastating consequences.
A People’s Pharmacy Reader Is in BIG Trouble Without Eliquis:
Q. I developed atrial fibrillation and my doctor prescribed Eliquis to prevent a stroke. At that time, it would have cost me over $600 a month. That was way out of my financial reach.
My doctor suggested that I order it from a Canadian pharmacy to save money. It costs me $159 for a three-month supply.
I have read on your website that I will no longer be able to purchase my medicine from Canada. What can I do?
A. In atrial fibrillation the upper chambers of the heart do not always eject blood effectively. As a result, blood clots may form and end up in the brain. This is why doctors frequently prescribe anticoagulant medication to prevent strokes from such clots.
Never stop a drug such as Eliquis (apixaban) suddenly! The result could be disastrous due to an increased risk of stroke.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is expected to block importation of medications from Canada and other countries starting on October 22. Your physician will need to help you find an affordable alternative so that you can make an appropriate transition before the deadline.
I don’t know about you, but I find this new policy tragic. Why would the U.S. Government make it harder for patients to get critical brand name medicines from Canada at affordable prices while it allows pharmacy chains to import generic drugs from countries like China, India, Brazil and Mexico? Remember, the FDA does not test generic drugs imported from abroad!
Getting Diabetes Medicine from a Canadian Pharmacy:
Q. I’ve been taking a low-dose Jardiance pill for two years to treat type 2 diabetes. The endocrinologist at the hospital put me on it after my heart attack and triple bypass. My blood sugar is under control, and I have experienced no noticeable side effects.
I purchase the drug from a Canadian pharmacy. It costs me about $400/year.
A. If you were buying Jardiance (empagliflozin) without insurance in the US, the monthly price tag could run around $250. Purchasing your medicine from a legitimate online Canadian pharmacy would bring the price down substantially. Of course, US insurance does not cover medicines you order from Canada, so doing the math is worthwhile.
You can learn more about the pros and cons of using Jardiance to treat type 2 diabetes in our eGuide to Preventing and Treating Diabetes.
Price Varies Depending Upon Country of Origin:
A reader wants to know why his wife’s medicine came from Mauritius if it was ordered from a Canadian pharmacy:
Q. Some time ago you wrote about legitimate Canadian pharmacies as a source for brand-name drugs. My wife uses a very expensive brand-name inhaler called Breo Ellipta. We were able to save well over half the price by buying it from Canada.
I purchased from the pharmacy offering the best price. Though we are satisfied, I wanted to report something that I felt was very curious. In filling our prescription with this Canadian pharmacy, we expected to receive it from them directly. Instead the brand-name drug was manufactured in Turkey and shipped from the African island of Mauritius! That’s quite a circuitous route to get our prescription. Is this unusual or common?
A. Brand-name medications have been quite a bit less expensive in Canada than in the US. Consequently, ordering from a legitimate Canadian pharmacy used to result in substantial savings. All that will change on October 22, 2026.
Many of the online Canadian pharmacies have had arrangements with pharmacies all over the world. When someone ordered from a “Canadian” pharmacy, the brand-name pharmaceuticals may have come come from New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Turkey or Mauritius. In theory, they are all high-quality brand-name products made by the original manufacturer.
PharmacyChecker.com provides price information from legitimate online Canadian pharmacies. You will find that those shipping exclusively from Canada were pricier, but still substantially less expensive than brand-name US prescriptions.
How Safe Is Shipping Meds from Mauritius?
We have been complaining about mail-order medicines for years. That’s because most pharmaceuticals are supposed to be stored and shipped at room temperature. That’s a problem in the US in the summer and in the winter. What happens when medicines are shipped from abroad?
This reader is also concerned about Mauritius:
Q. My husband has started ordering brand name Eliquis through a Canadian pharmacy website. The drug apparently takes a circuitous route through Mauritius from where it is shipped. Information suggests the drug originated in either Turkey or Puerto Rico. Is this medication safe?
A. You raise a very important question. We do not have a good answer. The shipment of medications poses challenges at every step from the manufacturing plant to the patient’s mailbox.
We have long worried that excessive heat and humidity could affect mail-order medicines. That includes many pharmaceutical products shipped within the United States.
According to the FDA’s official prescribing information for Eliquis (apixaban): “Store at 20°C to 25°C (68°F-77°F); excursions permitted between 15°C and 30°C (59°F-86°F).”
Delivery trucks for USPS, UPS and even FedEx can exceed that range. Medicine left in a mailbox may also be exposed to extreme temperatures. We wish the FDA, USP, or National Association of Boards of Pharmacy would address this critical issue.
What Does the FDA Think About Generic Drugs?
For a long time, the person who was most directly involved in day-to-day drug regulation at the FDA was Janet Woodcock, MD. She retired as Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) in 2021.
For more than 20 years, we contacted Dr. Woodcock directly when we had a drug watchdog issue involving the FDA. We bugged her relentlessly about generic drug quality. For most of that time, the FDA through Dr. Woodcock, reassured us that generic drugs were just fine, thank you very much.
Maybe a New FDA Tune on Generic Drugs?
We were astonished to see Dr. Woodcock’s testimony to the House Subcommittee on Energy and Commerce several years ago.
The publication FDAnews Drug Daily Bulletin (Nov. 11, 2019) summarized some of Dr. Woodcock’s key points:
“CDER Director Janet Woodcock called for an overhaul of American drug manufacturing to offset the nation’s dependence on APIs [active pharmaceutical ingredients] made in China, India and elsewhere, in remarks to a House subcommittee.
“The growing number of API manufacturing sites in China and other countries suggests the U.S.’ reliance on these countries for APIs is increasing,
“Only 28 percent of facilities making APIs for the U.S. market are domestic, while 72 percent are overseas.”
The bottom line seems to be that the pharmaceutical industry has moved its manufacturing processes oversees. That is especially true for generic drugs.
We were astonished to read that Dr. Woodcock would like to see purchasers of prescription drugs (pharmacy chains, wholesalers, pharmacy benefit managers, etc) buy medications from “manufacturers with very high reliability” (FDA, October 24, 2019). We find this ironic since the FDA has been telling everyone for years that all FDA-approved generic drugs are just as good as the brand name originals.
In her statement to Congress, Dr. Woodcock noted that:
“…drug manufacturers are more likely to keep costs down by minimizing investments in manufacturing quality, leading to quality issues that can trigger supply disruptions and shortages of needed medications.”
That is the first time to our knowledge that anyone at the FDA has admitted that some drug manufacturers may be “minimizing investments in manufacturing quality” and that could lead to “quality issues.”
Brand Name Drugs from Canada?
Many of our readers have been worried about generic drug quality for years. Some are buying brand name drugs from Canada to get quality at a lower price. One reader shared this:
Q. I have been on clonazepam, amitriptyline, levothyroxine, atorvastatin, atenolol and warfarin since 1994. Last Christmas I received my first generics from Indian manufacturers. This has been a nightmare, so I now buy brand Klonopin and attempt to get as many of my drugs as possible from Canada.
Too many generic drugs are not working because the FDA cannot monitor all off-shore Indian and Chinese manufacturers. I have had credible sources tell me that drug companies overseas check flight manifests to see when American FDA inspectors are coming.
Please send letters to the FDA to try to effect change. Bring drug manufacturing back to the US where the agency can monitor it properly!
A. You will be very interested in Katherine Eban’s book, Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom. She covers the FDA’s ineffectual struggles to oversee generic drug manufacturing outside the country, especially in India and China.
Should you wish to listen to our free interview with Ms. Eban, here is a link to the podcast:
Show 1169: What Are the Problems with Generic Drugs?
Readers Who Buy Brand Name Drugs from Canada:
Jan shares this experience:
“I currently buy some of my medications from a Canadian pharmacy. They are so much cheaper if you don’t have good insurance.”
“My doctor gives me a paper prescription. I mail it to the pharmacy. It’s a very easy process. I only buy brand name drugs. Do your home work and ask around.”
Nathan has to take a pricey cancer drug:
“I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in May 2018. The treatment was very expensive. I was not able to afford this medication. I am very thankful to my doctor, who suggested an offshore pharmacy. They are very affordable and trusted.”
But Is it OK to Buy Brand Name Drugs from Canada?
Last year we wrote about a new policy about importing drugs from Canada at this link:
Is It Now Legal To Import Drugs from Canada?
Not all so-called Canadian pharmacies are trustworthy. Some masquerade as Canadian but may be on an island in the middle of nowhere. People who think they are buying brand name drugs from Canada may be getting them from halfway around the world. That is why it is important to check the information carefully BEFORE you place your order.
Sadly, there will be virtually no more importing brand name drugs from Canada or any place else starting on October 22, 2026. We fear that many people will be harmed by this new government policy.
Please share your own experience if you have purchased brand name drugs from Canada. Was it hard or easy? Did you have problems with U.S. Customs? Did you save money? Was it worth the effort?
We interviewed a mother who experienced a terrifying drug failure because it was shipped during the summer when temperatures were outside the FDA’s recommendations. We think this radio show is extremely important, even if you do not receive your medicines through the mail or from a shipping company. Here is the link.
One last question: Do you feel protected by Customs and Border Protection now that this government agency has stopped importation of medicines from Canada by U.S. citizens?
