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Americans go to Mexico to buy medicine for Anthrax
US residents worried about the threat of anthrax are heading to Mexico, where antibiotics are cheaper and prescriptions aren`t needed.
US residents worried about the threat of anthrax are heading to Mexico, where antibiotics are cheaper and prescriptions aren't needed.
Mexican pharmacists say they are selling more doses of CIPRO, an antibiotic used to treat anthrax and other bacterial infections. Before the fears of anthrax emerged last week, there were only occasional requests for the drug in Mexico.
Prices ranged from 68 cents to $2.80 per tablet at border pharmacies.
Some internet sites in the United States have been offering the drug for more than $7 a pill. The American Medical Association urged physicians on Wednesday to stop prescribing CIPRO unnecessarily.
Paediatric specialists have warned that CIPRO is not approved for use by children.
Health officials in both countries also are warning about the dangers of self-medication, including possible side effects, like dizziness, confusion, depression, vomiting and diarrhoea.
Long-term complications include the creation of resistance, which makes later treatment less effective, and the potential for killing other protective bacteria in the body. Many people from the US go to Mexico and Canada to buy medications more cheaply, especially senior citizens without prescription drug insurance.
Medicines in both countries are sometimes 60 percent cheaper than in the United States.
Bureau Report
Mexican pharmacists say they are selling more doses of CIPRO, an antibiotic used to treat anthrax and other bacterial infections. Before the fears of anthrax emerged last week, there were only occasional requests for the drug in Mexico.
Prices ranged from 68 cents to $2.80 per tablet at border pharmacies.
Some internet sites in the United States have been offering the drug for more than $7 a pill. The American Medical Association urged physicians on Wednesday to stop prescribing CIPRO unnecessarily.
Paediatric specialists have warned that CIPRO is not approved for use by children.
Health officials in both countries also are warning about the dangers of self-medication, including possible side effects, like dizziness, confusion, depression, vomiting and diarrhoea.
Long-term complications include the creation of resistance, which makes later treatment less effective, and the potential for killing other protective bacteria in the body. Many people from the US go to Mexico and Canada to buy medications more cheaply, especially senior citizens without prescription drug insurance.
Medicines in both countries are sometimes 60 percent cheaper than in the United States.
Bureau Report