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Questions to ask a medicine access service before you start

Copy these questions into an email or a WhatsApp message and ask for written answers.

Reviewed by the Reserve Meds clinical operations team on 18 October 2026. Sources accessed 18 October 2026.

The short answer

Before you start with any service that offers to help you get a medicine from abroad, ask who supplies the medicine and under which licence, how the chain of custody is documented, who prescribes, whether the quote and timeline estimate are written, and how your personal data is protected. Ask in writing and keep the answers.

  • Supply: Who supplies the medicine, and under which licence?
  • Custody: How is the medicine traced and kept at the right temperature?
  • Paperwork: Who prescribes, and who applies for the permit?
  • Terms: Is the quote, timeline estimate and refund policy in writing?

About the medicine and the supplier

  1. Is the medicine approved by the US FDA for this use, or is it investigational?
  2. Which licensed company supplies it, and can you send me its licence details?
  3. Which country is it shipped from, and does it stay in the declared supply chain from start to finish?
  4. Will the pack, batch number and expiry date be documented before shipping?

US wholesale drug distributors and third-party logistics providers must be appropriately licensed and must report their licensure to the FDA every year to count as authorized trading partners under that law. The FDA publishes the reports in a searchable database that is updated every business day. A listing is not an FDA licence or approval in itself: the licence is issued by the state, and the database helps you see that a company has reported one.[1]

About chain of custody and temperature

  1. What storage conditions does the label require, and how will they be kept during transport?
  2. Is there a temperature record for the whole journey, and who reviews it on arrival?
  3. What happens if customs holds the parcel or the temperature goes out of range?

WHO's good storage and distribution practices note that medical products face risks at every stage, from purchasing and storage to repackaging, relabelling, transport and distribution, and that many different people and organizations handle them along the way.[2]

About prescriptions and permits

  1. Who prescribes? (It should be your treating doctor, not the service.)
  2. Who applies to the regulator or hospital, and what documents are needed from us?
  3. If the request is refused, what are the options and what happens to money already paid?

Rules for unregistered medicines are set by each destination country. In Bahrain, for example, NHRA Circular 41 of 2020 requires a hospital to obtain the authority's permission before it issues a purchase order for a non-registered medicine, and to transport and store the product in containers that follow the manufacturer's recommended conditions.[3]

About cost, time and your information

  1. Will I receive a written quote that lists each part separately before I commit?
  2. Will I receive a written timeline estimate, and what could change it?
  3. Who will see my medical documents, where are they stored, and will you ask for my consent before sharing them?
  4. What are the refund and cancellation terms, and where are they written?

In the UAE, Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data prohibits processing personal data without the owner's consent, apart from limited cases, gives people the right to ask for corrections and to restrict or stop processing, and sets requirements for sending personal data across borders. It came into force on 2 January 2022.[4]

How to use the answers

Ask the same questions to every service you are considering, in writing. Compare the answers side by side, and share them with your treating doctor and hospital pharmacy. Clear, specific, written answers are a good sign. Vague answers, or answers that only come by phone, are not.

How Reserve Meds helps

Reserve Meds is a digital health company. Medicines are supplied through a US-licensed pharmaceutical wholesale partner. We coordinate the route with your treating doctor and hospital, prepare the paperwork the regulator or hospital asks for, and arrange supply once approval is in place. Your doctor prescribes and makes every medical decision. You can ask us for our wholesale partner's licence details, and you get your quote and timeline estimate in writing before you commit.

We coordinate access to FDA-approved medicines only. Investigational medicines are only available through a manufacturer's expanded-access program requested by the treating physician; we can explain that route, but we do not supply them. Your coordination fee is quoted in writing for your case before you commit. No hidden charges. We give you a written timeline estimate for your case before you commit.

Ask us about a medicine

Tell us the medicine, your country and a WhatsApp or phone number. We reply within one business day. On WhatsApp we usually reply the same day.

Include the country code, for example +966 or +971.
Message us on WhatsApp

No account needed. We reply within one business day. Your coordination fee is quoted in writing for your case before you commit. No hidden charges.

Frequently asked questions

Should I ask these questions in writing?

Yes. Written answers can be compared side by side and shared with your doctor and hospital.

Who should prescribe the medicine?

Your treating doctor. A legitimate seller of prescription medicines always requires a doctor's prescription.

Can I check a US wholesale distributor's licence?

US wholesale distributors must report their state licensure to the FDA every year, and the FDA publishes the reports in a searchable database. The licence itself is issued by the state.

Does Reserve Meds answer these questions?

Yes. Ask us any of them in writing. We will give you our wholesale partner's licence details, a written quote and a written timeline estimate before you commit.

Sources for these answers: [5, 1]

Sources

All sources were opened and checked on 18 October 2026. Rules and labels change, so the treating hospital or regulator confirms the current position before anything is filed.

  1. US FDA: Annual Licensure Reporting by Wholesale Drug Distributors and Third-Party Logistics Providers (accessed 18 October 2026)
  2. World Health Organization: TRS 1025, Annex 7, Good storage and distribution practices for medical products (17 June 2020) (accessed 18 October 2026)
  3. NHRA Bahrain: Circular No. (41) of 2020, procedures for importing non-registered medicines (accessed 18 October 2026)
  4. UAE Government portal (u.ae): Data protection laws, Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data (accessed 18 October 2026)
  5. US FDA: How to Buy Medicines Safely From an Online Pharmacy (content current as of 2 January 2025) (accessed 18 October 2026)

Related

This page is general information, not medical or legal advice. It does not replace advice from your own doctor or the regulator.

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