Preston, that cost figure seemed a little out-of-range, so I took 4 minutes to look around for other information to confirm or refute the article's claim.
This is from the North Dakota public health website: http://www.ndhealth.gov/disease/Rabies/QandA.htm "How much does rabies vaccine cost? Rabies vaccine and immunoglobulin is very expensive. A typical vaccination series with the rabies immunoglobulin can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $7,000+ per person." > > and from a North Carolina new program: http://www2.nbc17.com/news/2011/jun/30/rabies-shots-are-expensive-hard-find-and-time-cons-ar-1169155/ "If you think the long wait and multiple visits are tough to handle, the hospital bills are worse. Hutton said the first treatment resulted in a bill of $10,289. But why so much? The cost of the ER facility is only 7 percent of the bill, but then you need a vial of immunoglobulin. That's where the big money factors in. Depending on its weight, a vial of immunoglobulin can cost upwards of$1,500. According to Rex Hospital Emergency Room supervisor Sherry Witt, immunoglobulin is like liquid gold. According to Rex, in Hutton's $10,000 bill, that one shot was 80 percent of the bill -more than $8,000 for that one shot." So my unscientific, cursory survey of the information on the internet seems to show that while very expensive, the figure quoted by the Miami Audubon seems somewhat inflated, by a factor ranging from 2 to 4 times. What would be more informative for us would be what Texas health providers charge for the treatment. ________________________________ From: Preston Forsythe <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Monday, February 20, 2012 10:23 AM Subject: [Texascavers] Cost of Rabies Shots According to an article in the Miami Tropical Audubon Society newsletter, Spring 2011, five rabies shots cost---$27,000. The author one evening picked up a "little fluttering thing," a bat, which bit her repeatedly between the thumb and forefinger. After 3 days she "yielded to reason (and fear)" and went to the doctor. Regular doctors do not stock rabies vaccine so she had to go to the Emergency Room. She received Five shots in the upper arm, painless, and a bill for $27,000. But, that prevented the possible rabies virus from migrating to the brain, where it is always fatal. The bat was a Brazilian Free-Tailed bat and it lived for 3 days, hence the shots. The author says if you must handle bats wear heavy gloves. By the way the Tropical Audubon Society headquarters in sw Miami at Coral Gables is a great place to visit. Lots of birding in that very tropical and jungle like area. Cavingly, Preston in KY --------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
