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How reasonable is it expect that diabetic supplies such as insulin pens (i.e. Lantus Solostar and Humalog Kwikpens) as well as things like test strips for meters etc. can be ordered and shipped to CR? I’m assuming these more modern forms of insulin delivery are not available in CR. Is there any reason why I can’t order those through my U.S. Doctor and arranged to have those shipped to me in CR? Thx.
It is not permitted by either the [url=http://www.aeropost.com/web/frontend/restringidos?lang=_eng&country=sjo]regular mail or by courier [/url]to ship medical equipment, medication or food supplements. Unless you have a special permit, they will be confiscated. Getting the said permit is not so easy…
I was also informed that you must have a [i]cedula[/i] to apply for the permitLantus pens and testing strips are available in Costa Rica. Last year, my granddaughter, who is a type 1 diabetic, came with us to Costa Rica and she ran out of her medtronic pump supplies while here. We had plenty of humalog and the pharmacy at the Maxi Pali in San Isidro carried Lantus pens. We only needed 1 pen to last her until we returned to the states and that is what we bought. If they carry the Lantus pens (as well as the bottles), it would be reasonable to assume that they also carry the Humalog pens as well. Not every pharmacy that we checked carried the pens. However, if you live nearer to San Jose than we do, you might find a larger number of pharmacies that do carry the pens especially the closer you are to areas heavily populated by Gringos. We did not need a prescription.
[quote=”rosiemaji”]Lantus pens and testing strips are available in Costa Rica. Last year, my granddaughter, who is a type 1 diabetic, came with us to Costa Rica and she ran out of her medtronic pump supplies while here. We had plenty of humalog and the pharmacy at the Maxi Pali in San Isidro carried Lantus pens. We only needed 1 pen to last her until we returned to the states and that is what we bought. If they carry the Lantus pens (as well as the bottles), it would be reasonable to assume that they also carry the Humalog pens as well. Not every pharmacy that we checked carried the pens. However, if you live nearer to San Jose than we do, you might find a larger number of pharmacies that do carry the pens especially the closer you are to areas heavily populated by Gringos. We did not need a prescription.[/quote]
I’m curious as to the cost of those Lantus pens. Did you buy individual pens or a box of 5? What was the cost? Thx.
They had the Lantus pens in boxes of 5 but we only needed 1 pen and so that is all that we bought. They had no problem with taking one pen out of a box and selling it to us. I can’t remember exactly what we paid but it seems like it was around 15-20,000 colones for one pen which was significantly cheaper than buying a whole bottle of Lantus for around 80,000 colones. It was similar to what we would have to pay in a pharmacy in the US without insurance. We had no problem bringing all of my granddaughter’s diabetic supplies including about 5 bottles of insulin (Humalog) with us when we traveled to Costa Rica. She had all of it in a separate bag that we told TCA was her “medical supplies” and they did not count it as a carry-on bag (Spirit Airlines). They even had no problem with the 4 frozen juice boxes in the little cooler bag that contained her insulin. The juice boxes not only served to keep the insulin cool but were also a possible source of glucose if her blood sugar went low. If you travel back and forth between the US and Costa Rica, bringing your supplies with you for the length of your stay is a viable way to get your diabetic medications here.
[quote=”rosiemaji”]They had the Lantus pens in boxes of 5 but we only needed 1 pen and so that is all that we bought. They had no problem with taking one pen out of a box and selling it to us. I can’t remember exactly what we paid but it seems like it was around 15-20,000 colones for one pen which was significantly cheaper than buying a whole bottle of Lantus for around 80,000 colones. It was similar to what we would have to pay in a pharmacy in the US without insurance. We had no problem bringing all of my granddaughter’s diabetic supplies including about 5 bottles of insulin (Humalog) with us when we traveled to Costa Rica. She had all of it in a separate bag that we told TCA was her “medical supplies” and they did not count it as a carry-on bag (Spirit Airlines). They even had no problem with the 4 frozen juice boxes in the little cooler bag that contained her insulin. The juice boxes not only served to keep the insulin cool but were also a possible source of glucose if her blood sugar went low. If you travel back and forth between the US and Costa Rica, bringing your supplies with you for the length of your stay is a viable way to get your diabetic medications here.[/quote]
Well at 20,000 colones per pen that’s about $40.00 which means a box of 5 would be about $200.00 which is a lot better than here in the US where that same box averages around $360 (that’s without insurance of course). I was mainly interested in whether they even carried the pens there. Good information. Thx.
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