Travelling outside of the EU???

[syd]

Ok, so currently I'm living in Spain which means I get free health care and can have the antibody replacement therapy for free.
BUT I want to go and live in South America where I obviously wouldn't get free health care automatically.

Has anybody had any experience in this?

Syd

[liz2mac]

Hi Syd,
wow, I really don't know the answer to this. Our immunoglobulin therapy is incredibly expensive and I'm guessing you'd have to but insurance to cover your treatment in South America? Would you be able to get insurance to cover this? I don't know. It may be worth your going on to the IPOPI website, this is the international PI Patient Support organisation. Send them a message and see if they have any knowledge of this. If you can let me know how you get on I'd be very grateful. If you get nowhere, come back to me and I'll see what I can do if you authorise me to do so on your behalf.
Liz

[syd]

Wow Thanks Liz, I will do that!

[liz2mac]

Just been talking to some lovely specialist nurses in Edinburgh who have a patient who is Columbian and about to return, hopefully we can put you together?
Call me or mail me?
Liz

[syd]

wow no way! Ok, i'll mail you now. I haven't made any other advances yet, been very busy at work and haven't had time.

[s162216]

Syd, have you considered the additional problem of Yellow Fever and other diseases in South America? The yellow fever vaccination is live and as so people with CVID, XLA etc are unable to have it because of the (small) chance of the vaccine causing the actual condition to take root in the body, and additionally there is no guarantee that the vaccination would work anyway as the immune response to it is impaired - I had all the usual childhood vaccinations and also Hepatitis B, I later found out that not one of them worked except for 1 varicella subtype, 1 pnumonococal subtype and tetanus. Cholera and other 'third world' diseases are also a problem as they are not included in IgG preparations so theres no protection against them from it unlike measles, mumps, polio, TB etc which are in the preparations. I'm not in any way trying to put you off, but be careful as this could make it not only more difficult to get insurance, but you could be at great risk living there.

Sam

[syd]

Yeah it's true but I've already been there three times recently (this was before treatment) and had all the vaccinations and I actually felt healthier there. It depends where you are in South America and it also depends on your own attitude. Ofcourse there's a greater rish having problems there but I'm a stronger believer, 'the best way to find out, is by trying'!!