BootsnAll Travel Community

I've just started getting vaccinations and am slightly outraged by the cost (particuarly the rabies vaccine)! I'm doing a RTW trip for a year and my doctor recommended the following vaccines and the price I've paid for each one. Please let me know if you think these prices are reasonable and if you've done a simlar trip which vaccines you've had:

1. Rabies (need 3 injections - $250 each)
2. japanese encephalitis (need 3 injections - $150 each)
3. Hep A (need 2 injections - $100 each)
4. Typhoid - $75
5. Yellow Fever - $175
4. Hep B (need 3 injections - $? submitted to insurance)
5. Polio booster - $? submitted to insurance
6. Tetanus booster - $? to come
7. Meningococcal Meningitis - $? to come

I estimate that I'll end up spending about $2400-2500 on vaccines before I leave. Is this typical? I live in NYC so I know things are expensive, but for some reason I thought I could do this for $1k or so.

My insurance fully covered my hep A, tetanus and typhoid.


I would not have gotten rabies vaccination. Even if you get bitten, you still have to get more shots, I believe.

I got mine in La Porte County, Indiana. I skipped the rabies and japanese encephalitis shots, and I'll probably die as a result... Anyway, here's my list.

1. Hep A/B - 3 doses @ $45 each (will get last one in NZ)
2. Typhoid - $45
3. Yellow Fevor - $75
4. Meningitis - $95
5. Tetanus/diptheria - $1
6. Polio - $1
7. MMR - $1

i agree, i think it's crap. it's insane that it should cost that much. I actually want to get the rabies shot but i think i might have to pass due to the price. It only buys you a day of time to get to the hospital which is the real bummer. I love animals and don't want to avoid them on the trip but it's so expensive just to get a shot to protect you for one day. It really makes me wonder how many travelers have even gotten rabies on the road.

The other thing is will 1 day even be enough time to get to a hospital for the rest of the series?

WOW, how did you get some of those for $1???

what was the price for rabies there?

Sorry for the continual posting but this leads me to another question - is it cheaper to get them in another country?

And Jap Enc...are you going to be working on a farm?


Some of these diseases are definitely something to be scared of, but most of them only if you plan to wading through a swamp in bumfuck vietnam.

I never did ask for the rabies price, because I had already decided not to get it.

There is one thing that may make a difference in cost. I got my shots at the county health department, not at my doctor's office. Also, I went to a different county than where I live. It was cheaper there, and since I worked in that county, it wasn't out of the way. That's how I got those for $1.

My insurance didn't cover any of it.

quote:

Originally posted by Littlemustard:
WOW, how did you get some of those for $1???

what was the price for rabies there?

Every time I read these I feel lucky. My insurance covers any vaccination. I guess they figure that it is cheaper to do that than to pay for me to catch something weird.

Littlemustard,
You made me go to TickerFactory.com

wow! well you're going to make me go to the county clinic if i can find one. I'm sure there is one, i guess i'll have to search around. at those prices it would be cheaper to fly to indiana and get the shots. hahaha!

anyway, looks like you're leaving soon have a great time on your trip!!

Hmm I paid $45 for typhoid, try getting the oral vaccine as that seems to be less expensive than the injections. This may sound horrible, but when I was shopping around for vaccines in Boston went to alot of the travel clinics in my [low income/largely immigrant] neighborhood, and the quotes I recieved were much lower. I think the situation in NYC will largely be the same.

I'm not sure if my insurance would have covered my vaccinations for travel. It was suggested that I try to submit a claim after I paid my doctor out of pocket, but I just didn't feel like fighting that battle, you know?

In other words it might be covered, but your doctor wants to cover his/her ass with payment, so they make you pay if there's any question of the insurance company fighting it. I mean, I don't remember paying this much for vaccinations back when it was a college requirement to have them, you know?

quote:

Originally posted by ViciousJ:
Hmm I paid $45 for typhoid, try getting the oral vaccine as that seems to be less expensive than the injections.

It also stays in your system for several more years.

wow i cant believe you guys have to pay that much for stuff - as much as i berate the NHS system at times -i can get them all free over here from my lovely GP except Rabies, Jap B and Cholera - sorry to rub it in .

However those cost a lot to have done - i just am in the middle of the Jap B which is £90 plus VAT and Cholera which is £40.

Mich

Wow, that sounds crazy expensive. I don't remember the exact numbers, but I think the most expensive was Kathy's Hep A/B combined, which was $75 or so each, three needed. I already had hep B (got it free in High School), and I think Hep A by itself was $60 each, 2 needed.

I seem to recall typhoid was cheaper...around $45 or so. And all this was back in the day when the C$ was worth a lot less than your $.

If I was doing them now, they'd all be covered by insurance. Mine covers all prescriptions, period, no questions about why we might be getting a prescription, which seems to be the norm for anyone who gets employer benefits.

Get the vaccines in the country you are going to, which will probably be cheaper.

I got my typhoid vaccine in Quito, Ecuador for $16.50.

That's a crazy amount to spend! I've made a decision to skip Jap Enceph and Rabies, given I'll be mostly around touristy rural areas and cities. I did some research and remember reading something like only 1 tourist gets Jap Encep a year. Don't quote me on that, however it was from a reputable source, and was enough for me to realize the cost was disproportionate to my risk.

I believe Meningococcal Meningitis is only a concern in sub-Saharan Africa, so I'm skipping that one too.

Before you decide on a Malaria medication, be sure to Google Lariam for some eye-opening user experiences. After doing so, I decided to go with doxycycline even though it requires a daily dose.

Bangkok is a very good place to load up on vaccines. At the Red Cross/Snake Farm you can get the rabies vaccination for a little over $10 per injection! I don't think any of the vaccines were more than $25 there.

Up to date on my MMR, Tetanus/Diptheria, Hep B and Polio.
I was very happy to find out that my parents had gotten me a Hep B shot when i was a kid =-) so I have a little less to buy!

Hep A (2 shots) - $95 per shot ($42.14 injection fee)
Typhoid (Live Oral) - $44.96
Rabies (3 shots) - $182 per shot
Jap Enc (3 shots) - $132 per shot


I only got the Hep A and Typhoid for now, but I was told that if I planned on heading into jungle and such that I get a Polio booster and a Tetanus booster, one of which would be good for life, can't remember which one.

OH and the Travel Consultation cost me another $45. So all in all I only have the first Hep A and the Live Oral Typhoid, totaling me at $227.28 so far haha

I REALLY hope I don't have to spend much more, I'm not sure if I will get the Rabies and Jap Enc yet, maybe later.


OH interesting bit of info, the Live Oral Typhoid Vaccine costs $44.96 at the clinic I went to and lasts for 5 years, while the Injection Typhoid Vaccine costs $58.88 and only lasts 2 years. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm............