We leave for our first trip to Africa on the 26th (can't wait!!) and went to pick up the Malarone perscription today. Wow! It was almost $200.00 for each of us. We have the pharmacy holding it while we see if there is a cheaper way to get it. Our HMO does not cover it. Any suggestions, or should we just go for it? ( I have done the research and decided it is the only malaria med I am comfortable taking) Thanks again for your help. Sue

Sue
to get a prescription in the first place for Malarone you must have seen a Doctor, heed his or her advice, spend the money.
There is nothing more important than your health and malaria is a killer.

Compared to the total price of your trip, the $ you've probably spent on camera equipment and clothes for this trip, the $ you will spend on souveniers, etc. the cost of the Malarone is negligible. Just put it in perspective. There is another thread from someone wanting to bring something memorable home from Africa. My first reaction to that question was... why a case of Malaria would certainly be memorable! But then I have a pretty sick sense of humor!
Just get the Malarone and don't think about the cost.
Lily

Have fun on your trip. We go May/June 2007. Does anyone know if Malarone is availble in Australia and its cost. We will be buying it no matter what the cost but thought if I knew the price I wouldn't be shocked when picking up the prescription like Sue was.

How many days do you need Malarone, 40?
We get ours from local Costco pharmacy, I think cost is $5 per pill/dose. Even if you are not a member of Costco, you can use their pharmacy (at least in California).
regards - tom

My experience is like Tom's. I had been paying $10 per pill until I called around and checked pricing. Sam's had it for under $5 per pill. I got the Dr to write the prescription in one person's name because the price per pill drops when you buy more.

I get mine at Wal-Mart, around $3.00 per pill but I think my insurance pays some (they don't pay at all on the Ambien)

Georgie,

Malarone would be available here. Ask your GP to prescribe it for you. I have no idea of its cost, because I use Lariam which has never given me any problems and is only one pill a week.

John

lily

I am the person who started the thread looking for a "lasting Momento" from Africa......I think i will take my Malarone( got my prescription today) and settle for a piece of art..

John,

We are diving at Quilalea island and have been told if taking Larium we cannot dive by the Padi Dive Centre as some of the symtoms (which we probably wouldn't get) are similar to decompression illness. So Malarone it is, I wish it was a weekly tablet though.

Hey Sue
I'm in Canada and our malarone bill is $510/each.... $15/pill my jaw hit the floor
We talked about lariam but can't dive....
And those were the options that our doctor was comfortable with so that what we are taking

I guess that I'm looking for the same advice... somewhere with reasonable prices

Aurora

Georgie,

Yes, I remember you mentioning the diving/Lariam problem elsewhere. Pity, but it's better to be safe than sorry...although by starting a Lariam course two or three weeks before departure, you could find out in advance if it was going to give you problems. That's how I approached it.

As far as price is concerned, as Lily has mentioned, it's such a small proportion of the cost of the whole trip, I don't understand why people baulk at it. Health should be the first priority.

John

Of course, Georgie, my suggestion doesn't help you with the diving centre's rules, but it might be useful for others who are trying to make up their minds.

John

I'll assume HMO means you are a US resident as I am We spent about $2.50 per pill at CVS. Shop around as each place has different prices with about a $15 range. Agreed costco is the cheapest, I found, and you don't need a membership to use the pharmacy. I don't think any insurance covers the malaria meds. However, we did have 100% of our shots covered by the PPO...thank goodness (total for this would have been another $500pp).

Shop around. The $10/per pill sounds like pure retail.

Since my HMO covers my malarone and lariam (when I took those), my cost is low - a copay of $25-$35, depending on # of pills.

As others have mentioned that Costco or any like pharmacy can provide at lower price - check around. Generally, for a 2/wk trip requiring about 20-22/pills per person should (or did) run in the $90-$125/range.

I ordered a 30 day supply of Malarone last April from a Canadian online pharmacy: canadadrugs.com. I paid a little over $100, about half what it would have cost me here in NY. Shipping was free since the order was over $100. Service was prompt and reliable.
Prices vary from company to company so if you go that route, do some comparison shopping. I googled and came up with a slew of them. They all post their license numbers so they are legit.

Very timely, we just started looking at this ourselves. We each need 21 pills, and had the doc write one scrip for 42. Pricing for 42 here in NJ is:
CVS $281 (6.69pp)- more than twice the price VDB was quoted - VDB where are you? maybe I should shop there!
Walmart $242 (5.76pp)
Walgreens $244.99 (5.82pp)
Was thinking about Canada, but for what it's worth, contacted a friend who works for Glaxo (who mfg Malarone) in the US and was advised that you are "not guaranteed product is of same quality" when purchased from Canada,especially online. Granted, this could be the company line, but figure we'll spend the extra $50 or so to be safe.
Happy Travels
Ellie

<b>Walmart $242 (5.76pp)
Walgreens $244.99 (5.82pp)</b>

Elle, this is about what we are paying too, $5.69 pp at Target, just for reference.

Thanks again for good advice!! We went to Costco and saved $140. Sue

Purely as an exercise to satisfy my own, and perhaps other Australians' curiosity, I've just done a comparison at an online pharmacy in Oz.

Malarone, 12 tabs (12 days): $67.50 AU

Lariam, 8 tabs (8 weeks): $42.95 AU (1 AUD is approx 0.75 USD)


John