Shots & Meds For International Travel

[Mrs. Ciz]

I did not budget enough money for this! I am taking my family of 4 to London (3 days) and South Africa (9 days in Kruger area) for a safari. I did my research and knew we needed malaria medication and how much it cost, but I wasn't sure what else we needed. I contacted our doctors who referred me to the Travel Clinic at our Publix. Publix was excellent and took care of everything, but I was not prepared for the cost. Everything they recommended was seconded by our doctors and by the CDC. We ended up with malaria meds, traveler's diarrhea meds, typhoid shots (all of us), Hep A shots (DH and me) and an MMR shot (DH).

It was $433 after insurance and a coupon!!!!! Luckily we were able to pay for it with our HSA account, so it didn't cut into our vacation money, and we got $60 in Publix gift cards because they were having a vaccination promotion. I just wanted to put this out there so other travelers will be aware and budget appropriately. In all my research and reading on travel forums, this cost was never discussed.

 

[SL6827]

I am going to Mexico in December, maybe I should check on this as well.

 

[AgentMama]

I am going to Mexico in December, maybe I should check on this as well.

We've been to Mexico many times and never been vaccinated or taken any medications with us other than over the counter stuff for just in case issues that might pop up.

 

[Hikergirl]

That doesn't sound so outrageous for 4 people, even after insurance.
Enjoy your trip!

 

[Eastern]

When my son traveled to (rural) Asia his doctor recommended Japanese encehpalitis vaccine (and other stuff). Initial dose and then a booster: $335 each. So you did good for 4 people.

 

[wendow]

I am going to Mexico in December, maybe I should check on this as well.

Unless you are going into some remote jungles, you will not need anything special in the way of vaccines or meds for Mexico.

 

[arielmomma]

Thanks for sharing this info. Considering a world cruise in a few years. I'll be sure to budget for vaccinations!

 

[Donaldswife]

We went to a travel doc before a trip to the Dominican a few years ago. I think they are worth every penny! We had to have one vaccine each, and they recommended what OTC medications to bring with us for various common ailments, as well as a packet of information about the area and how things differ from the United States. It was very helpful and definitely helped with peace of mind. My husband used them again when he did a volunteer trip to Costa Rica. Travel specialist docs are awesome!

 

[easyas123]

Our boys went to South Africa for a few weeks to visit some family friends....this was about 10 years ago? Needed no special immunizations.

 

[barkley]

to save on costs the cdc website makes the following recommendation folks might want to check out-

• If you're concerned about the cost of travel vaccines and medicines, check to see if your city or county health department has a travel medicine clinic. It may cost less to visit a doctor there than to go to a private doctor.

on traveling in general-if you're traveling INSIDE the u.s. it's not a bad idea to find out if the state you are visiting/traveling through is having any disease issues. where i'm at, in washington state for example, the entire state has had a state of emergency declared this year b/c of the number of measles cases (oregon has had outbreaks as well). it's being recommended that anyone who got their childhood vaccinations prior to 1968 look into getting booster shots as well as anyone who is uncertain if they were ever vaccinated.

i say this b/c several instances of initial exposure that resulted in full blown cases have been tracked down to either airports or popular tourist destinations (our local news will report a new case and then warn 'if you were at sea-tac airport or ..... on x date you may have been exposed'.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Our boys went to South Africa for a few weeks to visit some family friends....this was about 10 years ago? Needed no special immunizations.

Just got back from SA and the only special immunization I got was typhoid as it’s recommended by CDC. The MMR & HepA OP mentions are vaccinations that most US young adults will already have in the course of living in the US and are not special for traveling to SA. Malaria pills are only necessary if you’re traveling in an area where Malaria is present like Kruger. Travelers diarrhea meds are part of your personal preference medicines, akin to bringing something like ibuprofen imho, and not required.

As far as pricing it all out for anyone interested even my crappy insurance covers normal US adult recommended vaccines (like MMR booster) but I have to pay for all travel vaccines (like Typhoid) and would have had to pay for Malaria pills. My Typhoid shot was $85 at my county health office, I didn’t travel to an area with Malaria so no pills.

For those looking to avoid a Doctors Office fee go to the CDC travelers website to view recommendations for your country. I recommend doing this as far in advance as possible in case you need shots that are a series over the course of months and/or you need something like Yellow Fever which is harder to get hold of.

 

[tzolkin]

Fortunately, we just go to our regular doctor and our insurance covers everything other than copay for the prescription meds. We travel to Rwanda every year so I have discussed the cost with others whose insurance does not cover travel-related expenses (most people go to a travel clinic and take doxy for malaria because it's cheapest). But, you are correct, OP. No one seems to mention it until after the trip is already booked and you're preparing to go so it's definitely something to look into when budgeting.

Our boys went to South Africa for a few weeks to visit some family friends....this was about 10 years ago? Needed no special immunizations.

All the vaccines the OP mentioned except typhoid are routine vaccines for most Americans, so your boys likely already had those.

That said, most of the travel vaccines are only "recommended" so it's not like someone is checking whether or not you had them before you travel. So it's entirely possible that there were recommended vaccines for travel and they just didn't ask their doctor or research with the CDC before traveling. The only vaccine that I can think of that is "required" is yellow fever (for certain countries).

Typhoid is recommended for most international travel. We do the oral vaccine and it's good for 5 years.

Malaria pills are only recommended for certain areas of South Africa. These are not a vaccine and some people choose to not take it at all or only if travelling during malaria season.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

to save on costs the cdc website makes the following recommendation folks might want to check out-

• If you're concerned about the cost of travel vaccines and medicines, check to see if your city or county health department has a travel medicine clinic. It may cost less to visit a doctor there than to go to a private doctor.

on traveling in general-if you're traveling INSIDE the u.s. it's not a bad idea to find out if the state you are visiting/traveling through is having any disease issues. where i'm at, in washington state for example, the entire state has had a state of emergency declared this year b/c of the number of measles cases (oregon has had outbreaks as well). it's being recommended that anyone who got their childhood vaccinations prior to 1968 look into getting booster shots as well as anyone who is uncertain if they were ever vaccinated.

i say this b/c several instances of initial exposure that resulted in full blown cases have been tracked down to either airports or popular tourist destinations (our local news will report a new case and then warn 'if you were at sea-tac airport or ..... on x date you may have been exposed'.

This is exactly why DH got the MMR booster. We were both born before 1968, so either only had one dose or had the ineffective dose. I had an MMR booster when I started grad school in 1996. It was required for all students by then, so I was already good to go. When the measles outbreaks started hitting the news a few months ago, I pushed DH to get the shot. It took a big international trip for him to actually do it!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I am going to Mexico in December, maybe I should check on this as well.

It might be worth getting a scrip for traveler’s diarrhea at the very least. I’ve been to Mexico several times without getting sick, but the one time I did get sick (on my honeymoon no less) was not fun at all!

Like other posters have said, the Hep A and MMR shots are something our adult kids got when they were little as part of their regular vaccination schedule, but DH and hadn’t had them. Or like with the MMR, it had worn off. So we got them.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

Malaria pills are only recommended for certain areas of South Africa. These are not a vaccine and some people choose to not take it at all or only if travelling during malaria season.

I really debated with myself about the malaria meds. We will be in Kruger in the winter, which is usually dry and not mosquito season. But even in winter, the temps get up into the 80s. So there are some still of the pests around, and there have been reports of people getting malaria. I figured better safe than sorry and got the pills.

 

[adamak]

I did Malaria when I went to Kruger couple years back. Doctor said I should be fine without but I went with it anyways. You may also want to consider measles booster.

 

[crisi]

We did Tanzania this Spring. And yep....I just got an MMR booster. My husband did the lab test to see if he needed one, and they charged him for the lab test (and then he needed the booster). He also needed Hep (I had it) and we both got the typhoid vaccines. Plus the malaria meds (I think I got two mosquito bites and one tse tse fly bite - at home mosquitos LOVE me and they are much more vicious than in Tanzania).

I don't know if you are in a tse tse fly zone - but they are sight hunters and they particularly like black and royal blue. Keep your clothing in the beige and brown end of the spectrum.

The one person in our party that didn't get the full set was the one who ended up with tummy issues and needed the antibiotics - fortunately, the rest of us had listened to the travel doctors speech on eating in Africa and didn't end up needing them - so we shared.

Have a wonderful time - it wasn't a trip we intended to take - friends asked us to fill out their party - and it was AMAZING.

 

[Searc]

This is exactly why DH got the MMR booster. We were both born before 1968, so either only had one dose or had the ineffective dose. I had an MMR booster when I started grad school in 1996. It was required for all students by then, so I was already good to go. When the measles outbreaks started hitting the news a few months ago, I pushed DH to get the shot. It took a big international trip for him to actually do it!

I'm surprised you and your DH never had measles, considering when you were born. I was born in 1974 and had measles (the virus, not the shot).

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

We did Tanzania this Spring. And yep....I just got an MMR booster. My husband did the lab test to see if he needed one, and they charged him for the lab test (and then he needed the booster). He also needed Hep (I had it) and we both got the typhoid vaccines. Plus the malaria meds (I think I got two mosquito bites and one tse tse fly bite - at home mosquitos LOVE me and they are much more vicious than in Tanzania).

I don't know if you are in a tse tse fly zone - but they are sight hunters and they particularly like black and royal blue. Keep your clothing in the beige and brown end of the spectrum.

The one person in our party that didn't get the full set was the one who ended up with tummy issues and needed the antibiotics - fortunately, the rest of us had listened to the travel doctors speech on eating in Africa and didn't end up needing them - so we shared.

Have a wonderful time - it wasn't a trip we intended to take - friends asked us to fill out their party - and it was AMAZING.

We are soooooo excited!!!! I did all the research and planning myself. I gave my family options for activities and scheduling, but they’ve not seen any pictures of the hotels, land or animals. They are going to be blown away!!!!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I'm surprised you and your DH never had measles, considering when you were born. I was born in 1974 and had measles (the virus, not the shot).

Nope, neither of us ever got the measles disease. We both got shots when we were babies but they wore off after a while.