South Korea: Vaccinations and cost

[sanderson]

Hey! I love traveling and exploring new places too! When it comes to vaccinations for South Korea, it’s best to consult with a healthcare professional or check the official guidelines from your local health department. As for costs, they can vary depending on your location and healthcare system. It’s always a good idea to check with your insurance provider or travel clinic for specific information. By the way, I recently came across some info about Joplin. It seems that Joplin has a medium risk due to high crime rates, so take necessary precautions if you’re planning to visit.

[Jack2021]

Hi Dean,

Are you visiting Seoul to see Dr Kang?

As William said, if you are, please feedback on here about your experience.

For South Korea, the NHS Fit For Travel website says to confirm primary vaccination courses and boosters are up to date as recommended for life in Britain and to consider Hepatitis A; Hepatitis B; Rabies; Tetanus; Tick-borne Encephalitis.

Re the encephalitis, it says to consider this if you’ll be spending time in forests and rural areas.

There’s lots of other useful info on there too, so here’s the link to the South Korea section for reference – https://www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk/destinations/asia-east/republic-of-korea#Vaccinations

The jabs you’ll have to pay for in the UK are Hep B and flu (if you’re under 50), plus possibly the rabies and tick-borne encephalitis vaccines.

You’ll get the tetanus, diphtheria and polio combined jab for free and probably hep A too if you have them through your GP’s. I think MMR would be free if you chose to have that too.

Travel clinics and pharmacies will likely charge for everything, but could be a good option if you struggle to get an appointment with the nurse/whoever who deals with travel jabs at your GP’s.

Re hep B, it’s usually a 3 or 4 jab course if you haven’t had it before, so you’ll need an accelerated course if you travel in a month. I’d check with your GP and local pharmacies asap if you want to have it. The nurse at your GP’s may say it’s not always recommended unless you’re a sex tourist (they’ll phrase it differently to that!), but for a family trip to Asia, we all had it as a precaution. It can survive out of the body for over a week in dried blood/body fluids that you may not be able to see, so thinking about eating out all the time when away, staying in hotels and such like, we felt it a worthwhile precaution.

I’ve seen the travelbusinessclass website before but never used it, so it’d be good to hear how you get on if you do.

All the best,
Jack

[William Bryant]

If you’re having a Dr Kang repair could you dona write up after do you think Dean?

[Deanclarkend]

I just stumbled upon this post and found it very informative. I’m actually planning a trip to Seoul next month and was wondering about vaccinations and costs. Your advice on getting hep A and B, as well as TB, Covid, and flu jabs, is very helpful. I’ll definitely check with my GP to make sure I’m up to date on my MMR and tetanus and to see if any of the jabs are free on the NHS. Also, thanks for the tip on travel clinics. I’m always looking for ways to save money while traveling. Speaking of which, I recently came across a website called https://travelbusinessclass.com/ that offers tips on how to fly business class at a lower cost. I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks promising. Have any of you guys used this website before?

[William Bryant]

Thanks Johnson. That’s a must then

[Johnso]

William:

In addition to travel insurance I believe what you will need is referred to as Medical Tourism Insurance. It covers complications arising from the planned medical treatment.

johnso

[William Bryant]

Thanks Stephen…
What about injections for travel. Any that you’d recommend!?

Also, I am a fussy eater, my partner will eat anything, but is English/American food available easily? I will try South Korean.

Thanks

[Stephen]

Hi guys,
I am residing in S.Korea and helping international patients coming to the country.
New gov’t policy has been announced regarding quarantine.
From June 8th no self-isolate quarantine is required,
and neither any vaccinations, which means you can enter S.Korea whether you are vaccinated or not. Good news!
But PCR tests are still needed.
Just read the following:

https://kr.usembassy.gov/022420-covid-19-information/

Thank you guys.

[Mike M]

The only requirement for entry when I entered from US was the COVID Vaccine (Booster if two shots were over 180 days ago).

Obviously it is still good to keep up on all the other standard ones when they are due.

[Jack2021]

As Wim said, hep A and B are good to get and the sooner the better, as B can be 2-3 doses spaced apart. Can’t remember re A.

If you haven’t had a BCG jab (TB), then that’s advisable also, along with being up to date with covid and flu jabs.

Check with your GP to make sure you’re up to date with MMR and tetanus and also for costs as some jabs may be free on the NHS, such as hep A, dependent on the GP practice.

I’d ring around travel clinics as well to compare prices as they do vary.

[William Bryant]

I filled in an insurance travel quote online and it gave options of 3 different cover types, including medical and repatriation cover.

[Wim]

What kind of insurance will cover complications of the surgery? There is travel insurance but will it cover such an event?

[William Bryant]

Thanks Monika, Mark and Wlm…
I’m thinking of going late 2022 or early 2023.

I’m asking as the NHS website mentions hepatitis A and Hepatitis B but also…

Flu
MMR
Tetanus
Encephalitis
And
Rabies.

[Monika]

Hi William,
When are you planning to go? You will definitely need good health travel insurance. They are not to expensive .I am planning to go to Dr Kang hopefully in July latest in August . I don’t think you need any specific vaccinations for South Korea . I was looking into it but didn’t find anything on it. Maybe Mike M might help you as hew was just there.

[MarkT]

Be sure to get solid travel/health insurance too, where the purpose of your travel is approved up front by the insurer (to avoid a claim possibly being denied after the fact).

The chance of serious complication might be very low…but getting stuck in a foreign country, with no insurance, and requiring an extended hospital stay and/or additional medical services…definitely don’t want to deal with that!

[Wim]

I travelled many times in Asia and besides Hep A & B, no vaccinations are needed.

[Stephen]

No injections are required or recommended.
Surely Korea is the food kingdom, you can enjoy different kinds.
Watch the following:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eATsI9WVVck

Thanks.

[MarkT]

You still need to check on that before travelling.

Quite often, standard travel and emergency medical insurance is meant cover unforeseen situations and emergencies…but you have a pre-existing condition (the hernia), are seeking elective (non-emergency) surgery. That represents an entirely different risk to the insurer vs. someone just going on a normal vacation. You want to be sure that the nature of your trip does not void coverage and that you are covered for post-op complication or a botched surgery.

Remember, these ‘point and click’ policies are not fully underwritten up front…only when a claim is filed does the insurer really take a close look…and they will typically do whatever is reasonably possible to avoid paying out.

It is also worth finding out how quickly they do pay out…i.e., do you need to cover expenses yourself and will be reimbursed later when (if) they approve your claim?

Again, the risk of complications might be very low and everything probably goes just fine…but it could be an extremely costly and stressful situation to be overseas, dealing with post-op complications, and then find out you have to cover costs yourself for a while or that your costs are not being covered at all. Best to be prepared!