Why personal prescription shipments are different

Most personal medication orders are relatively small and are filled one patient at a time. The prescription must be reviewed, the medicine dispensed, and the parcel prepared for a specific customer.

Adding a customs broker, bond, and expanded documentation to each parcel changes the economics and workload of that process. The cost and administrative effort may be disproportionate to the value of the order. A process that works for a commercial shipment containing thousands of products may not work for one patient’s refill.

Why patients use licensed international pharmacies

Many patients turn to pharmacies outside the United States because the price of the same or comparable medication in the United States is unaffordable. Older adults and people who are uninsured or underinsured may be especially vulnerable.

If international prescription access is interrupted, patients may face sharply higher costs or difficult decisions about how to continue treatment. Patients should never change treatment or purchase from an unverified source because of a shipping concern.

What patients should do now

If you have a refill that is currently eligible, review it as soon as possible. Do not wait until your current supply is nearly gone. Orders need time for prescription review, dispensing, shipping, and arrival at the border.

Only order quantities allowed by your prescription and the dispensing pharmacy. If a possible interruption creates a health concern, contact your healthcare professional.

How CPPI supports patients

The final outcome is not fixed. CPPI organizes patients and supporters who want to protect access to affordable prescription medication. Its advocacy page helps patients send a prepared letter to their relevant congressional offices.

The bottom line

October 22 is not merely an administrative date. The new customs requirements may threaten the practical delivery system that connects U.S. patients with affordable prescriptions from licensed international pharmacies. Patients with eligible refills should act early and stay informed.

Order deadlines will vary

Each pharmacy will set its own final order date based on inventory, processing capacity, dispensing location, and shipping time. Ask your pharmacy today. An order placed too late may not be accepted or may not reach the U.S. border before October 22.

Protect continuity of treatment

Order only quantities permitted by your prescription and the dispensing pharmacy. If a possible interruption could affect your health, contact your prescriber or healthcare professional before your current supply becomes critically low. Do not change your dose, stop treatment, or substitute a medication without professional guidance.

Keep reading

Return to the Patient Action Hub, read why the deadline may threaten deliveries, and learn why the new process could be difficult for individual orders.

The current model depends on efficient individual shipments

Licensed pharmacies serving U.S. patients review prescriptions and dispense medication for one person at a time. Individual parcels are then sent through the international postal network.

This model helps patients access medicines at prices they can afford, but it operates on a very different scale from a large commercial import. A brokerage or compliance cost that is reasonable for a high-value shipment can be prohibitive when attached to one patient’s refill.

What the new process may add

The new requirements may involve:

• a customs broker for individual parcels;
• a customs bond;
• substantially more product and recipient documentation;
• additional government-agency information;
• duties, fees, or processing charges;
• more manual review and exception handling; and
• longer and less predictable border processing.

These steps create both cost and capacity problems. Even if a customs route exists, it may not offer a practical way to continue service at an affordable price for a high volume of individual parcels.

Potential business consequences

• lower daily order and shipping capacity;
• inventory held outside the United States;
• increased returns, refunds, and customer-service contacts;
• higher processing and compliance costs;
• uncertainty about whether parcels will be accepted; and
• possible limits or pauses for affected U.S. orders.

Potential patient consequences

Many patients use licensed international pharmacies because U.S. prices are beyond their budgets. Losing that access may force them to pay substantially more, delay a refill, reduce spending on other necessities, or search for another source.

An unregulated seller is not a safe answer. Patients should use valid prescriptions and consult a healthcare professional if a possible interruption could affect treatment.

The policy question

The practical question is urgent: can regulators and service providers support an appropriately safeguarded process that works for individual prescription parcels? Until operational details are established and proven at scale, normal service after October 22 cannot be promised.

What customers can do

Review currently eligible refills promptly and remain within prescription limits. Use the four-action patient guide, follow the central Patient Action Hub, and use CPPI’s advocacy tool if you want to contact your relevant congressional offices.

What is at stake on October 22?

The United States is changing how international postal shipments are processed. Those changes could create new costs, documentation demands, and operational barriers for personal prescription deliveries.

Patients do not need to master the customs process to understand the consequence: the current way they receive affordable medicine may no longer work as it does today. The exact impact is still unfolding, and possible solutions are being explored. But uncertainty is not reassurance when someone’s next dose depends on a package arriving.

Losing affordable access has human consequences

When medicine becomes unaffordable, patients do not suddenly stop being sick.

They may delay refills or cut spending on food, utilities, transportation, and other necessities. Some may go without treatment and hope their condition does not get worse. That is why October 22 matters: a system change that looks administrative can become a devastating personal decision in someone’s kitchen.

Americans have relied on personal importation for decades

CPPI says its community includes more than 135,000 Americans. The people represented by that number include older adults, caregivers, workers, families, and patients living with chronic illness.

They are not asking anyone to stop caring about safety. They are asking for a practical, responsible pathway to medication they can afford.

Patients need to be heard before access is lost

Once an affordable option disappears, the harm cannot be solved with an explanation of why the rules changed. CPPI now provides an online tool that helps patients send a prepared letter to the relevant Representative and Senate offices after submitting a ZIP Code.

What patients should do now

If you have a refill that is currently eligible, consider reviewing it early and remain within all prescription, dispensing, and supply limits. Do not change your treatment plan without speaking with your healthcare provider.

Then use the four-action patient guide and return to the Patient Action Hub for the full October 22 resource collection.

October 22 is a deadline—and a call to prepare

Patients should not have to lose access before the human cost is understood. The outcome is not yet written, but time is short. Learn what may change, prepare responsibly, and connect with CPPI if you want to support the patient campaign.