Medication Preps – In this series, “Early Prepping Lessons From The Coronavirus“, I am documenting what has worked and where I have fallen short on our preps. Once we’ve survived this vicious worldwide pandemic, we should be able to look back and strengthen our preparations for the next disaster.
This article is about OUR medication preps and how well we’ve stocked up on those vital necessities. I won’t go into alternative medicines or offer any medical advice.
Be sure to check out part one of Coronavirus: Early Prepping Lessons: Water Preps.
This article is about OUR medication preps and how well we’ve stocked up on those vital necessities. I won’t go into alternative medicines or offer any medical advice. I am not a doctor or medical expert. Far from it. Take the advice from the experts and medical professionals that you trust.
We’re still early (March 21, 2020) in our coronavirus crises here in the US. We have almost 20,000 “confirmed” cases of COVID-19 and more than 160 deaths with four states having issued a “shelter-in-place” order. (Source – WebMD) It will get worse. As preppers, all we can do is try to keep our families safe and help where we can.
I live in Michigan with my wife of over 36 years. Without going into too much detail, my wife is a type-2 diabetic, cancer survivor and has several other medical issues. She’s a lovely lady with a huge heart. She’s fine, I just want to set-up our personal situation a little.
My Medication Preps
First, I have only two prescription medications that I take and, honestly, they are minor. I have many months of supply in our medication preps. I’ll tell you how I accumulated this medication BUT it is not recommended. I have spent a long time skipping a pill here and there while continuing to pick up my prescriptions. I rotate these pills, putting the latest (newest) behind the newer pills. This keeps the meds from getting too old.
I cannot stress enough, I was only able to do this because my current physical condition is good and my medications are very minor. I am fortunate in that regard.
My Wife’s Medication Preps and A New Way To Add To It
Her being a diabetic, I’ve been concerned about my wife’s prescription supply for a long time. I will not ask her to skip taking meds to stock up for a SHTF event. Doing so could have consequences and the risk is unacceptable.
Now, thankfully, we may have eased insurance restrictions on medications during the coronavirus outbreak.
My wife, thinking even ahead of me, called her doctor and had an extra month’s supply sent to the pharmacy. I was relieved when he agreed and I was perfectly willing to pay full price for the added security and less stress.
To my surprise and relief, the insurance covered the pills. (Thankfully she’s not taking insulin so I have no idea how well that stores in a refrigerator or if it would have even been covered).
The Importance Of Prepping Your Medications
I would recommend that you, if possible, safe and legal to do so, stock up on any medications you rely on – prescription or otherwise.
We face possible shortages of life-saving medications. Many meds and their ingredients come from other countries, including China. While no shortages are being reported right now, the FDA says it expects the coronavirus (COVID-19) to affect drug supplies here in the US.
Another serious consideration is that you may face a quarantine, either forced or voluntary. If you are in a quarantine situation, you will need everything you rely on, including medications – possibly for weeks.
By having back-up medication preps, you also can reduce exposure by not being forced to venture outside into the public. While I am mentioning this, I will also recommend looking into a mail-order prescription service, which I believe is a ninety-day supply. We are going to start doing this through our medical insurance company.
Non-Prescription Meds In Your Medication Preps
When we get sick, coronavirus or not, we don’t want to run to the pharmacy. Even if someone makes that run for us, that increases the risk of spreading the problem to others.
I think most preppers already include basic medications into their preps. We have plenty of the basics and I wish we had even more with a wider selection. That will be addressed in this house as soon as everything gets back to normal.
Don’t Forget The Basic Medical Supplies And Tools
I thought I’d mention medical tools or equipment while I’m at it. Things you rely on or might need.
- Blood pressure cuff
- Pulse oximeter
- Thermometers
- Stethoscope
- Blood glucose meter kit
- CPAP machine
- Bandages & dressings
- Spare eyeglasses / contacts
- Heating and cooling pads
- Stethoscope
- Spare batteries for any equipment you rely upon
- Emergency amputation saw ~joking 😉
I’ll leave things like tourniquets, compression bandages, etc. for the article on first aid and medical kits.
Obviously, we’ve only discussed a small part of first aid and medical survival. More on first aid kits and other medical supplies in a later article.
Other posts in the Early Prepping Lessons From The Coronavirus Series:
- Part One: Water Preps
- Part Two: Medication Preps (You’re here)
- Part Three: PPE Shortage
- Part Four: Prepper Inventory
Be safe. Be prepared.
~Hawkins Out
