[gpt5]

Canadian manufacturers (Sandoz and Apotex) are preparing to launch their own generic versions in early 2026.

I bet many Americans would travel to Canada to buy it there (despite the legality concerns). The medications lasts 2 years in a refrigerator.

[rootusrootus]

If you're going to go for a two year supply, it's probably better to just risk shipping it. You're not going to come home with that much without it getting confiscated, and you're way more likely to be searched individually than a typical package is.

[c2h5oh]

With de minimis for US-bound packages suspended I suspect way more packages are inspected than used to be.

[JumpCrisscross]

> With de minimis for US-bound packages suspended I suspect way more packages are inspected than used to be

But a smaller fraction.

If you’re paranoid, route it via the UAE. All my European and Indian shippers are doing that for tariff-free pricing. (Personal stuff. I’ll pay a customs duty if I get it, of course.)

[CamperBob2]

You can import from UAE without paying any duties or fees?

[JumpCrisscross]

At least for wine, furniture, cheese, olive oil, art, kitchen equipment and medicine, at least from Italy and Germany and India and Taiwan, in the last six months, allegedly.

[delfinom]

I mean that entire region has bought the president, even got themselves a military base being built on American land now too.

So why not.

[seszett]

> got themselves a military base being built on American land now too

As a European I'm as critical of the US government as can be and their president has definitely been bought, but there are already several countries that have some training facilities and military personnel in the US.

Calling it a foreign military base is really unnecessarily hyperbolic. And given the amount of military bases that the US have on foreign land, the outrage also seems a bit misplaced.

[bparsons]

Higher enforcement demands probably lead to more stuff slipping through.

[themafia]

You should be able to travel with a 90 day supply without issue.

[daniel_iversen]

Not an American but there’s only very limited circumstances you can travel across the border home to the USA with foreign prescription drugs, right? And this scenario wouldn’t cover it. Unless you just meant they won’t get caught or maybe not fined or confiscated in practice? :)

[toomuchtodo]

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45638316

[valicord]

That's mainly for visitors. If you're a US resident, you can't just buy medicines abroad, unless of course we are talking about the "they won’t get caught" scenario.

[chronos00]

US residents can buy medicines abroad the FDA link says personal importation is allowed as long as the medicines are FDA approved and are not being imported for commercial purposes. Now in the context of the original post maybe generic versions of Ozempic won't technically be FDA approved yet if the company that produces it has to wait for the US patent to expire.

[vl]

Of course you can buy medicine abroad and legally bring 90 day doses.

More over, you can order and ship medicine, including ozempic and zepbound, using American prescription from Canadian online pharmacies. For some drugs it’s quite cheaper than paying American prices.

[Muromec]

Sounds like an opportunity for non-residents.

[axus]

The major legal question for generic Ozempic imports will be, did Novo Nordisk buy Trump coins or donate to the White House ballroom?

[reaperducer]

I bet many Americans would travel to Canada to buy it there

Why travel? There are thousands of ads on TV, radio, and the internet each day for Canadian pharmacies that promise to ship whatever you need to the U.S.

[loeg]

I think the biggest legality concern is having your shipment seized at the border. Maybe a risk but it’s not exactly a scheduled drug.

[stevehawk]

the shelf life is probably longer than that if you buy it in dehydrated form and don't hydrate it (but i have no idea)

[greycol]

While I'm all for saving costs, I would be shocked if mixing your own inject-able medicine either weekly (with the chance of making a mistake in dosage or sterility) or too such a high degree of sterility that you can confidentally store several doses is not worth the $200 return flight every two years. Maybe I'm overestimating the risks but it still seems like a small saving for it.

Realistically the cost of semiglutide in generic form means you could fly return every 90 days (personal import restriction for perscription meds) and still save $1000 every 3 months (3x$500 monthly - return flight - generic cost).

[choilive]

Its remarkably straightforward. Not fool-proof, but easy. Bacteriostatic water, single use needles/syringes, and self healing injection port vials makes it simple to maintain sterility throughout the process.

Multiple doses can be mixed and stored in the fridge for 4-6 weeks.

[kimos]

While I agree and this all seems reasonable, I think you give the average person far too much credit.

[stevehawk]

it's extremely common. everyone i know that's on a glp-1 does it this way. that way you can buy it in bulk for a discount. i buy mine roughly 35 weeks worth of doses at a time.

[qgin]

How do they have confidence that the vials they're getting are sterile / pure / free of endotoxins / etc?

[SoftTalker]

This is commonly done for injectable fertility treatments, though in my experience they are hydrated just before use.

[phantom784]

If you live near the border, of if you regularly travel to Canada anyways, then the travel cost isn't an issue.

[ReptileMan]

So cocaine from the south, ozempic from the north, fetanyl from the west and the meth is homegrown. So USA just need some powder from europe to close the circle.

[OptionOfT]

That would be MDMA.

[fragmede]

Wait, but where does Elon's ketamine come from?

[pqtyw]

Doesn't he have his own legal lab?

[ReptileMan]

Mars

[gus_massa]

I guess you get more shelf life, but it's an injectable drug.

You probably have to disolve it in very clean water in a very clean container. Do you have to match the salinity and pH with the proprties of the blood? How much time must you stir it to ensure it's completely disolved? Do you have to add something to increase/reduce viscosity? Some alcohol in case there are a few bacterias or improve solubility? How long does the small homemade batch last in the fridge?

IIUC there is another version in pills, they may have a longer shelf life, or not. But ask a medical doctor before taking a ramdom medicine.

[stevehawk]

Bacteriostatic water is widely available and you hydrate it in the container it comes in. Its pretty easy. I promise you you probably know someone on a glp-1 that is already doing this.

[gus_massa]

I found it in a mainstream site here. 30ml for $300, with free shipping for next Wednesday. It has classified as a "nutricional supplement" for bodybuilders. I didn't purchase it, but I guess now I'm in yet another list.

[VuickB6]

There are places to get it WAY cheaper than that. I started off buying single vials for big money until I found group buys. Once my wife started using them too it was going to be too damn expensive to buy single vials. You can get kits (packs of 10 vials) for a lot less money. Been doing this 2 years now!

[gus_massa]

I guess so, but I was just curious and I made a quick search.

[AnimalMuppet]

Um, what are the legality concerns? Is it illegal to bring medicine for your own use over the border? If not that, then what?

(Honest question. I don't know.)

[jacobgorm]

Just don’t do it in a speed boat.

[Scoundreller]

More government attacks on the freedom of law-abiding speed boat owners

[ano-ther]

https://www.fda.gov/industry/import-basics/personal-importat...

[dataflow]

This sounds like something the current SCOTUS should be more than happy to shoot down, no? If you're bringing medication for yourself from abroad that you obtained legally, why should the FDA's concerns for your own safety trump (no pun intended) your freedom?