Cross-border pharmacy tourism still thriving, but expert urges caution when buying certain drugs
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Esther Huerta has lived with a kidney transplant for 17 years and has to take medication for the rest of her life to ensure her body does not reject the organ. Huerta says the medicine is too costly to buy in the U.S. so she crosses the border to Ciudad Juarez every month. Huerta takes Sirulimus and Mycophenolic Acid to prevent rejection of her kidney transplant. Her medicine costs approximately $600 in Juarez, in comparison to almost $1,000 in the United States. Pharmacy tourism is the act of going to a different country to obtain medication due to lack of insurance, lower cost, and easier access.
