Mexican pharmacies are selling pills to American travelers with lethal fentanyl

Mexican pharmacies that cater to US tourists sell drugs that appear safe but are often spiked with deadly fentanyl and methamphetamine.

That’s the conclusion of new research that examined drugs purchased legally in four cities in northern Mexico, where travelers from the United States often seek out low-cost healthcare and pharmaceuticals.

“For pills sold as oxycodone, we tested 27 of them and found 10 or 11 of them contained fentanyl or heroin,” said Chelsea Shover, a researcher at the UCLA School of Medicine.

He said the behavior of retail pharmacies in Mexico puts unsuspecting people at high risk of overdose and death.

“When I see that there are fentanyl pills somewhere they look like [prescription drugs]I know there must have been people who died from this,” Shover said.

His team also found drugs sold in Mexican pharmacies with methamphetamines.

Although these drug stores sell drugs to Mexican consumers, Shover says their major customers appear to be Americans.

“Similar products are available much cheaper in Mexico, so Americans travel to save money.”

Two Democratic lawmakers have sent a letter to the US State Department requesting a travel advisory to warn Americans of the dangers of buying drugs in Mexico.

“We should be absolutely very concerned,” said Rep. David Trone (D-Md.), one of the letter’s authors. “We have nearly 12 million Americans who visit Mexico every year.”

According to Trone, pharmacies boosting profits with the high-risk practice are found in communities where Americans travel seeking relief from high-cost prescription drugs sold in the U.S.

“There’s literally a pharmacy on every corner. They’re everywhere over there, because the price of drugs is cheaper.”

On Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reported that State Department officials apparently knew of the danger posed by Mexican pharmacies as early as 2019 but failed to issue a high-profile warning to travelers.

At least one US traveler is known to have overdosed and died after taking drugs bought at a drugstore in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in 2019, according to the newspaper’s investigation.

Rep. Trone said if US officials knew of unsafe drugs being sold at legal outlets in Mexico, they should have warned travelers first.

“We have received no response [from the State Department] and it’s very frustrating,” he added.

The State Department sent a statement to NPR saying it would not comment on the lawmakers’ letter.

In the background, an official pointed to a notice included in the State Department’s standard online information on Mexico urging travelers to “be careful when buying drugs abroad.”

“Counterfeit medicines are common and can be ineffective, the wrong strength, or contain dangerous ingredients,” the notice reads.

There is no reference, however, to the specific risks of fentanyl-related dangerous drugs sold in legal pharmacies.

During a press conference on Monday, spokesman Ned Price said US officials are constantly updating security advisories issued for Mexico.

“We’re always looking for information to determine if we need to move our travel advisories in one direction or another,” he said.

Earlier this month, four Americans were kidnapped by armed men on their way to Mexico to seek cheap medical care. Two of them were killed.

That case had already raised concerns about the safety of medical tourism in the country.