Ms Shahana`s contribution regarding medicine and its importance is both interesting and useful. I would however like to add (which she didn`t consider) the following in the context of Australia:
Prescription medicines are heavily subsidised by the Australian Government for its permanent residents and citizens. Non-citizens and visitors do not get this benefit, even if they get prescriptions from local doctors while becoming sick in Australia (onshore). They are required to pay full price of the prescription medicine (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme doesn`t apply to them) at the Chemists.
Buying of prescription medicines for non citizens is also a problem as a Chemist would demand to see the Medicare Card of the person named on the prescription. This was introduced several years ago to prevent non citizens getting subsidised medicines and carry them overseas.
Not only from the US, as Ms Shahana refers, it is also illegal to carry prescription medicines from Australia for people/non-citizens living overseas (eg. for relatives and friends). However, Australian citizens and permanent residents can carry their own prescription medicines, which show their names on the packet, when travelling aborad. Australia also has reciprocal agreements with some countries such as UK and Netherlands etc where citizens of one country could get reasonable medicare benefits while travelling in the other.
Therefore, one shouldn`t carry or ask someone else to carry from Australia any prescription medicines for their non-citizen relatives and friends living overseas. If caught at the airport, the authorities may issue severe penalties/fines and even prosecute (jail) the person found to be with prescription medicines/drugs not meant for him or her, and intending to carry overseas for others.
People in Australia can ask their chemists to provide generic brand of a prescription medicine, if available, which is relatively cheaper to buy. Additionally, when an Australian family reaches its yearly safety net limit, on receiving the Safety Net Card from a Chemist, the family is allowed to get prescription medicines at the concessional rate (currently I believe less than $5 per item) for the rest of that calendar year. However, multiple prescriptions from various doctors and deliberate hoarding of prescription medicines during this concessional period, for future use, is illegal.
The Australian Government has been running TV and print media advertisement campaign for quite sometimes now to prevent this happening, and to educate and making people aware of these new requirements, rules and regulations.
Helal Morshedi
12-Sep-2007
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Home Page Published on: 12-Sep-2007 
