Can Vegans take tablets/ medications that include animal products , or are there alternatives specifically for them ?

That depends on what you're talking about. Many don't have any animal products and some do. But virtually all medication and medical devices are tested on animals.

As a vegan and a healthcare professional, I've run into this quandary. I came to the conclusion that it doesn't matter where a medication came from when a person is dying, here and now. A new device was recently cleared for use by paramedics and EMTs in many states. I've seen the gruesome experiments on pigs in which they were tested. Where live pig arteries were snipped like thread, to test out a bleeding control device. A lot of pigs died. As a result, ambulance personnel across the country are now helping people with wounds that were otherwise untreatable by anybody other than an emergency department surgeon.

So are we to let people die or starve to death? That wouldn't be reasonable. If you need to take some meds, I say take them anyway. All we can do is hope for a better future, where these things don't have to be the fruits of suffering and death.

There are some medications which could be classified as vegan however no pharmaceutical company makes vegan friendly lines of all medications, it is just not economical. Most vegans are sensible people and take the medications that their doctor prescribes for their condition or undergo the necessary medical procedures as required regardless of how they were originally tested.

No, there are no effective alternatives.

ALL medicines and medical procedures have been tested on animals, and many - probably most - medicines contain animal by-products; lactose is frequently used as a cheap binder.

The word vegan isn't synonymous with the word martyr. Vegans who need medicine take it. Any who claim they never would have never been in the position of needing medicine. If a vegan was to refuse all non-vegan medicine s/he would be in trouble if s/he broke her leg. Not only would s/he have to refuse to have the bones rest (animal-tested procedure), but would also have to refuse any pain relief (animal tested, probably containing animal by-products).

I owe my life to medicines and medical procedures. Doesn't make me any less a vegan

There are no alternatives. It's up to you whether you chose to not take life-saving medication because animals.

There are no special vegan alternatives. It's another vegan doublespeak.

On one hand they claim all animals are equal. Human life is no more important than any other animal. But when it gets down to THEM, suddenly their life is more important.

And it's not just life saving meds. They are quite willing to use acne creams, nose surgery, gastric bypass, etc, developed on animals and, of course, birth control pills.

Some tablets are powder wrapped in geletine, or capsules. Unless you tell the doctor he will issue them as standard. There are different tablets without the geletine for dietry requirements.