What to Do if Your Medication Is Lost on a Flight

Even when packed in a carry-on bag, it’s possible that meds can go missing

By

Cassandra Brooklyn,

 
Updated September 02, 2026
AARP
Updated September 02, 2026
an illustration of a pill bottle with international stickers
Don’t let medication lost during a flight ruin your trip. Follow these steps to access additional medication.
AARP (Getty Images, 2)

Key takeaways

  • If medication is lost with checked baggage, file a claim immediately and save the claim number.
  • Travelers may be able to get replacement medication through a pharmacy, doctor or an urgent care facility.
  • Before an international trip, check the medication rules at your destination(s) and carry copies of your prescriptions and health information. ​

While it’s inconvenient for any baggage to be lost when flying, it can be unhealthy and dangerous if it contains important medications. This is a potential issue for adults 50 and older who travel by airplane — 49 percent domestically and 66 percent internationally, according to an AARP survey — who need to keep this in mind. 

Everyone knows that medication should always travel with you. Even when flights depart and land as expected, there’s always a chance that checked luggage can be delayed or disappear. It’s important that items like medication be packed in carry-on luggage.

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But what happens when your carry-on luggage needs to be checked at the gate?

If overhead bins are full, passengers are typically required to check their carry-on bags. When a bag needs to be checked during boarding, even the savviest traveler could forget to remove medication from their bag. This carry-on-turned-checked luggage is now more vulnerable to loss, delay or damage. 

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, airlines mishandled 2,431,940 bags in 2025. The maximum liability on lost, damaged or delayed baggage is $4,700. 

If your medication goes missing, here’s what to do.

Step 1

File a lost baggage claim with your airline. This should be done at the airport, as soon as you realize your luggage is missing. Save the claim ticket (and take a picture of it), as you’ll need to provide the claim number to airline representatives if you follow up on the claim.

Step 2

Reach out to the pharmacy that filled your prescriptions to see if refills are available. If they are, you may be able to transfer prescriptions to a pharmacy at your destination, especially if you happen to have filled the prescription at a chain pharmacy. Some pharmacies in the same chain share systems.

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Step 3

If no refills are available, call your prescribing doctor. While the pharmacy will do this as well, a phone call from you may help move things along. If the doctor cannot be reached, talk to the pharmacist. The pharmacy may be able to issue an emergency supply, depending on the prescription. Some medications cannot be issued without a new prescription; when this happens, the pharmacy will typically refer the patient to a nearby urgent care facility, where a medical professional can write new prescriptions to be filled locally.

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Step 4

If the lost medication was recently refilled and cannot be refilled again for another 30, 60 or 90 days, you may need to call your health insurance company to request an emergency exception. 

Tips for international travel

Transportation Security Administration spokesperson Daniel Velez says that when flying internationally, travelers should review the destination country’s rules before departure because “some medications that are legal by prescription in the U.S. may be restricted or prohibited abroad.” Consequentially, if this medication is lost when a checked carry-on goes missing — or for any other reason — it may not be possible to secure another prescription abroad.

Proper travel health documents related to your prescriptions are especially important for international travel. Lael Kassis, vice president of market innovation and development at EF World Journeys, adds that travelers should bring a copy of their prescription and a note from their doctor indicating the medication is necessary. This is especially true for controlled substances such as narcotics, which Velez says should be kept in their original labeled containers.

“If you’re part of a group travel tour, your tour leader can help with any medication-related issues that arise. Kassis says a tour director can “help travelers access medical attention and pharmacies where medications can be appropriately secured.” Group travel tours can be a good way to explore global destinations, as they can be cheaper, safer (and even more fun) than traveling alone.

For instance, Kassis recalls his tour support team assisting a traveler on a trip to South Africa whose blood pressure medication was packed in baggage stuck in Atlanta. After the traveler landed in Johannesburg, the tour director found a local pharmacy where the traveler purchased a sufficient supply for the trip.

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In addition to helping secure medication on the ground, some group tour companies have emergency response or global support teams that can help with medical events. Such assistance could prove especially helpful for travelers who arrive several days early to adjust to the new time zone or explore on their own. The tour leader may not be available to accompany travelers to a pharmacy (and they may not have even arrived in the city that far in advance), so these teams would step in to help.

In some cases, a travel insurance provider may cover the cost of replacing prescribed medication abroad. Providers like Allianz, Travel Guard and World Nomads may cover the cost of medication, but rules vary by plan and company, so it’s best to confirm the details of your specific plan. ​

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Prevention tips

While nobody expects their luggage to be force-checked, delayed, damaged or lost, it’s always a possibility. There are a few things you can do to prevent it from happening — and minimize the damage if it does.

  • Keep medication in a carry-on bag small enough to fit under a seat. This way, your purse, fanny pack, shoulder bag or small backpack (and the medication inside it) can stay with you on the flight even if the overhead bins are full.
  • Before your flight, confirm that you have refills available on important medications. If you don’t, call your doctor to request refills before your trip.
  • Bring a printed or digital copy of your medication list, health insurance card and contact information for your primary care provider and specialists. Having this information handy will make it easier to replace lost or delayed medication. 

What to know about packed assistive devices

Assistive devices, defined as “any piece of equipment that assists a passenger with a disability in coping with the effects of his or her disability,” are not subject to these liability limits. This could include walkers, wheelchairs, hearing aids, syringes and auto-injectors, among other items. Keep in mind, each airline has its own baggage policies within the government’s rules, so passengers must check their carrier’s website for details.

Just as assistive devices are not subject to the liability limits, liquid medications are not subject to the 3.4-ounce liquid requirement if medically necessary. The TSA does not require medication to be packaged in its original bottle, but TSA spokesperson Daniel Velez recommends that if liquid medication exceeds 3.4 ounces, travelers keep it in its original packaging.

Velez explains that it’s at the discretion of individual TSA officers whether an item goes through security, so if the officers can’t determine what’s in the bottle, “they may not let it through.”

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on Aug. 18, 2022. It has been updated to reflect new information.

The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.​

Cassandra Brooklyn is a contributing writer who covers travel, caregiving, human-interest stories and the outdoors. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time and National Geographic, among other publications.

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