We are now Super Humans!
Steve and I are now officially immune to…
Steve: Hep A & B, Rabies (sort of, I’ll explain below), Typhoid, Yellow Fever, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Tetanus.
Gina: Hep A, Typhoid, Yellow Fever, Polio, Tetanus, Meningitis, Measles, Mumps, and Rubella.
Yippee!
In the one surprisingly generous act by Kaiser Medical Center, they cover all of their immunizations for free! “What, what’s that you say? Free?” Yes, free! I was as shocked as you are (if you actually know who Kaiser Permanente is…which for all of my family members that would be a no). I had to ask the nice nurse on the phone several times if she meant that all of the shots were free, and then I still thought I was being misinformed/tricked/bamboozled. (Okay, I know that “bamboozle” just means trick but it’s such a cool word and I like the 3-word balance.) But lo and behold, they’re all free! Every last blessed one of them. This is crazy amazing considering that if I would’ve got these shots at the travel clinic it would have been well over $300. I would’ve gotten the Hep B and Rabies vaccines as well, but they’re each 3 shot series that you have to get over a period of time, and I was only able to get an appointment with the travel clinic at Kaiser after I lied about my departure date and then it was still only 4 days before my insurance was canceled. Talk about stressful. But the crazy nurse lady seemed to get a kick out of stabbing my arm, because she threw in the polio vaccine even though I didn’t really need it (it’s suggested if you’re going to Egypt, which, I admit, is a sort of possibility if we win the lottery or live much cheaper than I’m budgeting for but still really unlikely). I told her my insurance was about to run out, so she gave me the works! My left arm hurt for a week (and I couldn’t really lift it) after the 5 injections, 3 in my muscle. The shots were all free, and I paid $50 for my travel health consultation at the UC Berkeley travel clinic (really worth it. They gave me a lot of good information and printouts on each individual country and different risks and prevention measures), and $50 for my co-pays on the malaria pills, antibiotics, and Typhoid pills. So, $100 in all for my vaccinations! Awesome! I might still have to get a Measles, Mumps, Rubella booster shot, but that’s only $15, so it won’t break the bank. (I ended up having to get the MMR vaccine, but managed to get it for free again. Yes, I’m just that good.)
Steve didn’t get off quite so easily. Being a student he was covered under whatever the student insurance was. He ended up paying around $200 for his shots and $190 for the malaria pills, antibiotics, and Typhoid pills. He still ended up saving oodles of money, as the malaria pills alone would have cost over $1,000 at full cost (he paid $150 for 6 months worth of pills). We ended up both going with Malarone. It seems like the best option but is typically more expensive and you have to take it every day. But it seemed better than the alternatives (one has an antibiotic in it which will be not so good for me and the other one has a nasty possible side affect of depression, bad dreams, and other bad psychological stuff. Most people, it seems, have no problem with it. But after having my good friend Joe go through panic attacks associated with his anxiety disorder, I really don’t want to put myself at risk of having a panic attack, let alone a panic attack in the middle of the rain forest in a foreign country surrounded by monkeys–think Congo but me without a crazy-ass diamond gun).
On the rabies front, Steve opted to get the vaccine because he had the time for the 3 shots and it was relatively cheap. My understanding of rabies is that if you get bit by a rabid animal you have 24 hours to get the first dose of treatment (otherwise, hello Old Yeller). And then there’s more treatments and what-not (this is obviously where I fuzzed out during my health consultation). The rabies “vaccine” basically gives you more time. It eliminates the first dose of treatment that you must get within the first 24 hours. Thus it buys you more time and less treatment. As I said before, I didn’t have the time to get these shots done (did I mention for free?!) while I was still insured, so I decided that it’s not really worth the $$. Steve will just be my human shield, protecting me from rabid monkeys, street peddlers, and guinea pigs. Which is about how it would be with or without him having the rabies shots, so it all works out fine.
Tags: Finances, Pre-Trip Planning
montarsig
I absolutely love this read. Me and my Boyfriend are going to be taking off about the same time you are for our 2 year adventure around the world. We leave June 1. 2008. We are so excited. We have not gotten all our shots yet but have an appointment for them this week. So this was great reading about all that you guys went through. Thanks alot. maybe we might run into you on the road. Maryanne