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> total cost of this service is between $1,500 and $3,000. As a non-us person, I can't understand how medical bill works in the state. Surely this is some mar

> total cost of this service is between $1,500 and $3,000. As a non-us person, I can't understand how medical bill works in the state. Surely this is some marked up price for insurance? In Hong Kong, this is HK$215 ( ~US$30) per shot. You can get everything you need under US$200

lstodd 2y ago
$30K for post exposure is even more crazy. Idk about Hong Kong, but in saner parts of Europe it's either free or like $15-$30 for the whole course.
vundercind 2y ago
> Surely this is some marked up price for insurance? Maybe. But they’ll absolutely try to get you to pay the full price. They might also demand payment up front. In either case you might be able to pay less if you negotiate, but maybe not. If you’re insured you’ll pay between $0 and the full price of the discounted insurance rate (which this may already be close to—it depends where the numbers come from) depending on the insurance plan you have and how exactly it’s already been used. If you’ve already spent a lot of money “out-of-pocket” this year, you may have hit a limit that triggers 100% from insurance until the year’s up, usually a calendar year (try not to split a pregnancy over two calendar years…) Then there’s whether the hospital’s in-network for your insurance, and maybe separately whether the doctors are and whether any testing facilities used are—that is, whether the insurance will pay for service from these providers (which may sure look to you like just one provider-entity, but might not be) at all. Sometimes almost nothing is in-network once you’re more than a couple hundred miles from home (and plenty within that radius might not be either), depends on the plan. [edit] oh and if you ask anyone involved what you are going to have to pay, they’ll treat you like a moron. If you persist, they’ll send you on a wild goose chase of paperwork and billing codes and talking to more people who act like you’re a moron for thinking that was a reasonable question. You probably won’t ever figure it out, just have to wait for the bill. And then the inexplicable second bill. Then three more bills scattered over the rest of the year, two for entities you can’t identify without some phone calls, usually without even specifying on the bill WTF they’re asking you to pay for.
01HNNWZ0MV43FF 2y ago
The prices make no sense and nobody is quite sure why it's so fucked But someone somewhere must be making a killing. Probably the middlemen
rallison 2y ago
In the US, the pre-exposure course is now often just two doses, although three is possible (and used to be more common). The per-dose price at most pharmacies in the US is $400-500. You'll generally need either a referral or a travel clinic consultation to get one (unless you work in a job where it's deemed essential to get the rabies pre-exposure course). In more reasonable states, you can do something like the Costco Travel Vaccine consultation service (which runs ~$40) and, if you indicate you are traveling to remote areas in certain countries, get a recommendation for the rabies vaccine course. In some cases, insurance will cover the rabies pre-exposure course. But that is generally rare. So, in general, best case if you just want to voluntarily receive the vaccine in the US? Around $800 if you live in a state that is reasonable and use an inexpensive travel consultation service (like Costco's offering). And, if you want the full three dose series? That will generally set you back around $1200 minimum. So, for a lot of people in the US, the cost will be under the $1500-3000 range that was noted. However, it's still expensive, even in the best case in the US!

lstodd 2y ago

$30K for post exposure is even more crazy. Idk about Hong Kong, but in saner parts of Europe it's either free or like $15-$30 for the whole course.

vundercind 2y ago

> Surely this is some marked up price for insurance? Maybe. But they’ll absolutely try to get you to pay the full price. They might also demand payment up front. In either case you might be able to pay less if you negotiate, but maybe not. If you’re insured you’ll pay between $0 and the full price of the discounted insurance rate (which this may already be close to—it depends where the numbers come from) depending on the insurance plan you have and how exactly it’s already been used. If you’ve already spent a lot of money “out-of-pocket” this year, you may have hit a limit that triggers 100% from insurance until the year’s up, usually a calendar year (try not to split a pregnancy over two calendar years…) Then there’s whether the hospital’s in-network for your insurance, and maybe separately whether the doctors are and whether any testing facilities used are—that is, whether the insurance will pay for service from these providers (which may sure look to you like just one provider-entity, but might not be) at all. Sometimes almost nothing is in-network once you’re more than a couple hundred miles from home (and plenty within that radius might not be either), depends on the plan. [edit] oh and if you ask anyone involved what you are going to have to pay, they’ll treat you like a moron. If you persist, they’ll send you on a wild goose chase of paperwork and billing codes and talking to more people who act like you’re a moron for thinking that was a reasonable question. You probably won’t ever figure it out, just have to wait for the bill. And then the inexplicable second bill. Then three more bills scattered over the rest of the year, two for entities you can’t identify without some phone calls, usually without even specifying on the bill WTF they’re asking you to pay for.

01HNNWZ0MV43FF 2y ago

The prices make no sense and nobody is quite sure why it's so fucked But someone somewhere must be making a killing. Probably the middlemen

rallison 2y ago

In the US, the pre-exposure course is now often just two doses, although three is possible (and used to be more common). The per-dose price at most pharmacies in the US is $400-500. You'll generally need either a referral or a travel clinic consultation to get one (unless you work in a job where it's deemed essential to get the rabies pre-exposure course). In more reasonable states, you can do something like the Costco Travel Vaccine consultation service (which runs ~$40) and, if you indicate you are traveling to remote areas in certain countries, get a recommendation for the rabies vaccine course. In some cases, insurance will cover the rabies pre-exposure course. But that is generally rare. So, in general, best case if you just want to voluntarily receive the vaccine in the US? Around $800 if you live in a state that is reasonable and use an inexpensive travel consultation service (like Costco's offering). And, if you want the full three dose series? That will generally set you back around $1200 minimum. So, for a lot of people in the US, the cost will be under the $1500-3000 range that was noted. However, it's still expensive, even in the best case in the US!