Prescription delivery: hot meds not ok!

[happyone1959]

I am concerned about prescription drug deliveries. Prescription medicines are not supposed to be exposed to heat---it says so right on the drug-information flyers, not to be kept above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.  And yet US Postal trucks are not air conditioned, and mailboxes are like tiny ovens.  Even if I watch for the postal carrier and run right out, the medicines are boiling hot (this is Florida, but a lot of seniors live in warmer climates; the meds are much hotter than body-temperature--hot to the touch and thus noticeably above 98 degrees). They have clearly been in the heat for a while.

The medicines will lose effectiveness when transported and stored like this. (Can they also become unsafe? I guess it IS unsafe when your meds are ineffective, right?)  Why would we want baked prescriptions that are known to be less effective when exposed to hot conditions?  Why would we allow that system for our seniors? It is not a cost savings that is worth it; we pay for medicine but it is less effective (and thus possibly unsafe). 

Can we create a movement to make this stop? Could AARP please do a Bulletin or Magazine feature on it? Maybe AARP reporters could ask what the FDA thinks about the safety and effectiveness of prescriptions that are transported for hours, and stored in mailboxes for hours, in 98-degree-plus conditions. Is that really OK?  What do pharmacists say? What do chemists and scientists say?

[FluffyBlack]

I'm a retired mailman, and I could've told you NEVER to order your drugs for postal delivery. FOR THAT VERY REASON. Also the cold. Just pick them up at the drive-thru, or have a family member do it for you. I think some of them even offer delivery.

[GailL1]

There are already best practices in place for this concern.  The FDA has strict rules in place.  Lots of articles and how to solve any problems that might occur.

By default, if a medication does not have s specific range of temperatures assigned by the maker, the FDA assigns the room temperature ones.  

GOODRX 03/10/2022 - What to Do If Your Mail-Order Prescription Is Exposed to Extreme Temperatures

There are ways which a person can handle a situation where there maybe a problem like what you are concerned about.

Since so much of our medications - especially generics - are imported, wouldn’t that mod of getting the med here to the US also be of concern - the FDA has rules and regs for that too -

Any med that has a strict temp control has strict packaging control or is not permitted to be sent by mail.

[nctarheel]

You are so right, @happyone1959.

That is why I refuse to allow my insurance company to pressure me into mail order prescriptions.

Don't forget, the medications may sit in your mailbox during extremely cold weather too if you are from a state other than Florida.

Additionally, your medications can be stolen, tampered with, and any other thing one can think of that a perpetrator may do.

[happyone1959]

Thank you, @nctarheel .  I agree and also have resisted this so far, but when I start medicare, the medicare-tricare-for-life insurance combination requires (REQUIRES!) home delivery as a cost-cutting measure.  That means veterans and retired military family members will be at direct risk. 

Womnder if @aarp could write about this problem?  Or maybe the New York TImes?  Any ideas?

[GailL1]

It is only a requirement as a cost-cutting measure especially for meds for chronic conditions - there are still other ways of getting your meds under Tricare or the VA.  - Network Pharmacies, Military Pharmacies - in fact some meds cannot be filled at all through mail order - like controlled substances.  

Remember there are some folks that have NO access to any method other than mail order.

[nctarheel]

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@happyone1959 wrote:

Thank you, @nctarheel .  I agree and also have resisted this so far, but when I start medicare, the medicare-tricare-for-life insurance combination requires (REQUIRES!) home delivery as a cost-cutting measure.  That means veterans and retired military family members will be at direct risk. 

Womnder if @aarp could write about this problem?  Or maybe the New York TImes?  Any ideas?

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@happyone1959,

It is a shame that you are required to submit to mail order pharmaceuticals. I don't believe care is taken in their delivery to homes if the Postal Service's, Fed-Ex's, and UPS's regular delivery of other items are any indication. I am sure those three entities do not follow manufacturer recommendations when it comes to medications. Additionally, your mail box is like an oven during the hours mail is usually delivered.

Thank goodness my insurance gives me the choice. I have no ideas regarding your plight other than what you mentioned regarding attention being brought to it.