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Yellow Fever Travel Warning for Sudan Thumbnail

Yellow Fever Travel Warning for Sudan

The Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) in Sudan began a 10-day mass vaccination campaign against yellow fever in Darfur on 20 November 2012, in response to the outbreak.

As of 17 November 2012, the outbreak is reported to have affected 26 localities, with a total of 459 suspected cases including 116 deaths. Two cases were confirmed by IgM ELISA test and RT-PCR by the WHO regional reference laboratory for yellow fever, the Institut Pasteur in Dakar, Senegal. An outbreak investigation team led by the Ministry of Health, with support from WHO are in the field to assess the extent of the outbreak and prioritize areas for the mass vaccination campaign. Read More »

What is the Cost of Hospitalization & Medical Care in the US Thumbnail

What is the Cost of Hospitalization & Medical Care in the US

According to a recent PBS News Hour article, the average U.S. Citizen spent $8,233 on medical care in 2010 which is 2.5 times more than any other country.  Ironically, the average American family has $3,800 is savings according to the U.S. Census; however, only 15.9% of the population in 2011 was uninsured.

Graphic is from PBS News Hour article

A hospital stay in the United States costs over $18,000 on average according to Mark Pearson, head of Division on Health Policy at Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).  You might not know but in the U.S., how much a doctor or hospital gets paid depends on the type of insurance a patient has.   A patient with an insurance plan with “rich” benefits will usually be have the option to be treated by most doctors while  patients who have lower-paying insurers might be denied, unless it’s an emergency.  The type of insurance you have is critical to the availability and quality of care you have the opportunity to receive.

Currently, there are few methods for controlling rising costs in medical care in the U.S.  Having a comprehensive health insurance policy limits your financial risk of an unforeseen illness or  accident.

Graphic is from PBS News Hour article

 

The table below gives some estimate costs of common medical procedures compared with some of the countries with similar quality of medical care.

Graphic is from PBS News Hour article

The table shows that:

  • A coronary bypasses costs between nearly 50 percent more than in Canada, Australia and France, and are double the price in Germany.
  • Hip and knee replacements are generally cheaper in other countries than the U.S.
  • PTCAs (coronary angioplasty) are much more expensive in the United States than elsewhere.

If you are visiting the US, it is highly recommended to purchase a visitors health insurance or travel medical insurance plan from a reputable insurance company.  What is the cost of hospitalization in the U.S.?  Unforeseen accidents and illnesses which result in hospital stays can exceed $18,000.  Read the full PBS News Hour article online at

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2012/10/health-costs-how-the-us-compares-with-other-countries.html