Insurance turned down our Malarone prescription so we have to pay out of pocket. The local grocery store pharmacy where I normally go was going to charge close to $10/pill. I called around and found that COSTCO pharmacy has it for $6/pill. Saves almost $100 for the 2 of us.

Just a heads up in case others have waited until the last minute like we have.

Target wanted about $7 per pill FYI

Thanks for the info. I'll start my phone shopping for Malarone and the other pills, too.

Insurance turned us down on Malarone for ROAR 1. Not surprised that the policy has not changed.
We used Sam's Club last time. Will do so again. I'll try to post the cost when I learn it this weekend. It should be about the same as Costco.

Doug

We lucked out with the Malarone because our insurance provider, United Healthcare, did cover it. I guess I should stop complaining about them!

Andrea

For ROAR we had the prescriptions for malarone filled at the travel clinic, at no discount since they don't take insurance - this time I just filled them at CVS because the head of the clinic did us a favor in not requiring the usual travel medicine review appointment (and charge) and just wrote the prescriptions. By filling them through CVS we only paid $30 per person - more than our usual $10 co-pay, but less than the full retail would be.

Yikes, I was annoyed that our insurance only paid enough that we had to pay about $2.00 per pill. I didn't know how well we'd been treated. I find it quite amazing that the insurance companies will refuse to pay a few bucks for malaria prophylaxis when they clearly would have to pay the hundreds of thousands of $$$ for treatment if one of their insureds contracted a chronic disease like malaria. Seems like a no-brainer, but it apparently isn't...

Is everyone taking malaria prophylaxis? I haven't even asked for a prescription for it. Just plan on long sleeves and pants and loads of deet on hands and face. Also It isn't the rainy season yet....is it?

Sure hope I'm not being a "dumb blonde" but never took it all the time we were in India or up the Amazon. LOL almost typed in up the creek.

This time next week we will be somewhere over the Atlantic ....

Pat and Ray,

Because malaria is so serious (life threatening) and because I'm a mosquito magnet, I wouldn't dream of NOT taking the malarone. However, I have heard of people that go to the Kruger area and do not take any prophylaxis. I just couldn't do that myself. I'd make myself crazy worrying about every bug that flies by me!

Here's the CDC link to malaria info:
http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/

If you decide not to take the malarone, consider buying some permethrin insect repellent. This is a spray that you apply directly to your clothes (shirts, pants, hat, socks, etc.). It lasts through a few washings. Pre-treat your clothes and then apply the Deet before each excursion outside.

Andrea

Pat, Mark is unable to take it and our doctor recommended even last time that I not take it. I did that time, but am not taking it this time. We never saw a mosquito, and the safari lodges treat all the water holes for them.

Our doctor is from India, and said that she doesn't give it to her children when they go home, either. They just go when it isn't rainy season.

Count us in the lucky ones whose insurance did cover Malarone, with a $25 co-pay for the 12 pills.

Dena

When it comes to taking Malarone (or something like it) or not, all I can say is for you to ask your doctor.

for a point of reference, when we (on ROAR 1) took the flight from Capetown to J-Berg... the flight crew walked thru the cabin spraying an anti-bug spray. It stank. But the spread of malaria is much scarier.
Yes, it is that big a deal.

I do not know know the condition in the other countries (India, etc), but my humble advice is not to fool around with it in South Africa.

just my 2 cents worth...Doug

Doug, I thought you were on Rovos with the rest of us from Cape Town to Johannesburg.

(coudn't resist that)

Guess I mixed up which flight I took to where. But they did spray.
(or maybe the open bar on Rovos caused the confusion)

Just to clear this up Johannesburg is not a malaria area and neither is Cape Town. They do not spray the planes between those two cities.

They do spray planes a lot though on international flights so I am sure it happened to you Doug at some point in your trip. It could have been from Victoria Falls to Johannesburg actually but I honestly dont remember.

Doug, I do know they spray on the Delta flight from ATL to Johannesburg before it stops in Dakar, Senegal. My son's new in-laws from SA and fly there often. And I think they said the same about the plane that flies out of Dulles.

We flew to JoBurg from JFK via Dakar a couple of years ago on South African Air and there was no spraying.

The last time we encountered spraying on a plane was on Air Jamaica several years ago. (We held our breath as long as possible.)

Ngaire, I think you are right. It was either to or from Victoria Falls. It was the first time we experienced this. Yuch.

I just put in my prescriptions for the Discovery Collection and GAME this evening. With my state BCBS, I paid $1 for each Malarone pill. Now the Vivohf Berna for typhoid will be $50 for 4 doses!!! Much better than typhoid, I would say.

We have private insurance. I hate to think about the cost for Malarone and the oral typhus. Someone told me to check out Costco or Walmart (editing to say that was John at the top of this thread.) I'm not sure we really need the typhus (or malarone for 3 days before the rainy season even starts). But, since we paid for the travel clinic and have the typhoid prescription, we might as well take it since the effects last for 5 years. Surely in the next 5 years we'd need typhus protection. I have lots of travel plans!

Donna, When I asked my pharmacist about checking the prices of the scrips at different locations, I was told that they had to run it through my BCBS before they would know the cost. According to my pharmacist, every pharmacy would charge the same price for the name brand scripts due to my co-pay.

Yes they would if insurance covers it. In my case insurance wouldn't cover it. I had to pay for it out of pocket.

You never know with insurance! I picked up mine today, and forgot pharmacy (CVS) didn't have my insurance plugged in (usually use a local pharmacy, but they had no Malarone. I have BCBS, but had to pay just over $4 per pill ($50) and would have been about twice as much without insurance. Not bad, but not as good as Beth got! Perhaps I am co-paying more b/c of deductible.

It has been said that North Carolina has the second best retirement benefits in the nation. I feel fortunate after working here for 31 years. Many states don't give educators any health benefits at retirement.

I always thought I had equally good plans since I work for pharmacos...I have worked for 2 large pharma cos since ROAR1. I paid for the top POS plan under both companies...the first Cigna, now Aetna. Our last plan didn't cover us under ROAR1, this plan did...$1 per pill. Just lucky this time. The plans are inscrutible.