If You Get Meds by Mail, They May Be Losing Potency in Summer Heat

While studies show that mail-order medications can lower costs and help patients stick to their prescriptions, some healthcare providers are increasingly concerned about the potential for heat-related degradation during shipping.

Mike Ren, an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine and a primary care physician, told The New York Times that heat exposure can combine with changes of pressure in aerosolized cans to create a “double whammy” of issues. Aerosolized drugs are usually designed to be fast acting and are often used in an emergency. Liquid drugs, which are carefully mixed to have precise ratios of ingredients, can become less effective due to evaporation, he said.

As reported by the Times, some mail-order pharmacists are assuring customers that their drugs are safe to use as long as there were no visible signs of degradation. But research has found that some medications can be damaged by heat without showing any outward signs. Mail-order pharmacies said they have specialized packaging that’s weather resistant and precautions are taken when shipping meds that require specific storage temperatures, the Times noted.

The United States Pharmacopeia, which sets standards for the storage and shipment of pharmaceuticals, recommends oral meds be kept in an environment that’s between 68 and 77 degrees (20 to 25 Celsius).

A 2023 study published in the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association found that shipped packages of medications spent more than 68% of their time outside of the recommended temperature range. When a heat wave hit the United States in 2022, UPS drivers told The New York Times that temperatures in their vehicles reached as high as 150 degrees (66 Celsius).

The United States has experienced a particularly hot summer this year, with the west coast and Texas subjected to temperatures over 100 degrees (38 Celsius) for days or weeks at a time. The east coast was somewhat cooler, but millions of people were still under heat warnings in early July. The heat was part of a worldwide trend that saw global temperature records repeatedly broken. This relentless heat underscores the growing concerns about the safety and efficacy of mail-order medications, as higher temperatures become the new norm.