Any update on Paxlovid availability for foreigners in Bangkok?

[david_je]

When I got COVID in April 2023, Hospital for Tropical Diseases where I sought treatment told me it was only available to Thais. Was given  molnupiravir, which is not recommended as first-line treatment in U.S. 

Has anyone here recently gotten access to Paxlovid?

I am of demographic that needs it, and would like to be prepared in case I am re-infected.

Also, anyone with personal experience can recommend where to go for COVID treatment in Bangkok?

Thanks.

[connda]

1 hour ago, david_je said:

When I got COVID in April 2023, Hospital for Tropical Diseases where I sought treatment told me it was only available to Thais. Was given  molnupiravir, which is not recommended as first-line treatment in U.S. 

It's available at government hospitals.  At least in our Ampher.  But then, the head-doctor is a personal friend.  Fyi.  All it did was make me throw up immediately after taking it.  So?  I took nothing other then Tylenol.  4 days with a mild flu and finished. No shots.  No drama. My wife took it.  Results?  4 days of a mild flu and finished.  She had a lingering cough for about a week after.  Just saying.

[Sheryl]

A post promoting a conspiracy theory documentary full of COVID misinformation has been removed.

 

@david_je"only available to Thais" has never been an official  government policy. Sounds like something the hospital decided on its own. Tends to happen with things in short supply, and Paxlovid supplies remain more limited than those of other drugs.

 

No guarantee, but your odds of getting Paxlovid would be greater at the private "international" hospitals. Of course so would the cost.

 

Having already had COVID infection once, and presumably also having been vaccinated, you will already have considerable immunity if re-infected. Do not be put off by accounts of declining antibodies, you will still have cellular immunity. 

 

COVID reinfection is significantly less likely than first COVID infection to cause severe disease

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9961977/

 

[Lorry]

On 2/9/2024 at 6:59 PM, Sheryl said:

COVID reinfection is significantly less likely than first COVID infection to cause severe disease

But the risk to develop long covid is not lower at your 2rd, 3rd or 4th... infection,  it's the same risk every time you catch covid

[david_je]

On 2/13/2024 at 6:07 AM, Lorry said:

But the risk to develop long covid is not lower at your 2rd, 3rd or 4th... infection,  it's the same risk every time you catch covid

Yes, long Covid is what I worry about most.

[david_je]

On 2/9/2024 at 6:59 PM, Sheryl said:

A post promoting a conspiracy theory documentary full of COVID misinformation has been removed.

 

@david_je"only available to Thais" has never been an official  government policy. Sounds like something the hospital decided on its own. Tends to happen with things in short supply, and Paxlovid supplies remain more limited than those of other drugs.

 

No guarantee, but your odds of getting Paxlovid would be greater at the private "international" hospitals. Of course so would the cost.

 

Having already had COVID infection once, and presumably also having been vaccinated, you will already have considerable immunity if re-infected. Do not be put off by accounts of declining antibodies, you will still have cellular immunity. 

 

COVID reinfection is significantly less likely than first COVID infection to cause severe disease

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9961977/

 

Are you still doing boosters every sixth months, wearing masks, avoiding crowded places, etc., Sheryl? Where would you recommend for reliable info on current infection, hospitalization, rates in Bangkok/Thailand? I'm wondering to what extent I should continue to take previous precautions.

[Sheryl]

5 minutes ago, david_je said:

Are you still doing boosters every sixth months, wearing masks, avoiding crowded places, etc., Sheryl? Where would you recommend for reliable info on current infection, hospitalization, rates in Bangkok/Thailand? I'm wondering to what extent I should continue to take previous precautions.

Reliable data on anything other than COVID deaths is not available or even being compiled anymore .

 

I have never done boosters at 6 month intervals, not indicated. I  Do one when/as new vaccines wirh expanded coverage come out.

 

I wear masks in hospitals and, if not too hot, on crowded public transport. Otherwise not.

 

 

[couchpotato]

10 minutes ago, david_je said:

Are you still doing boosters every sixth months, wearing masks, avoiding crowded places, etc., Sheryl? Where would you recommend for reliable info on current infection, hospitalization, rates in Bangkok/Thailand? I'm wondering to what extent I should continue to take previous precautions.

Paranoia/hysteria here.

[Lorry]

Bumrungrad has Paxlovid, 31000 baht (plus cost for doctor and test)

[david_je]

10 hours ago, Lorry said:

Bumrungrad has Paxlovid, 31000 baht (plus cost for doctor and test)

Thank you for letting me know.

[Sheryl]

12 hours ago, Lorry said:

Bumrungrad has Paxlovid, 31000 baht (plus cost for doctor and test)

Did you mean 3,100?

[Lorry]

On 3/15/2024 at 10:14 AM, Sheryl said:

Did you mean 3,100?

Not 3,100

It is 31,000 baht for one course of 5 days (=30 tablets)

You have to add cost for doctor and covid test.

 

Pfizer has raised the price recently ( e.g. in Europe from 60 - sixty - € to 1100 - elevenhundred - € since March if you don't get it through insurance). 

31,000 baht is now quite a bargain. 

 

Molnupiravir is only about 2500 baht, that's at Bangkok Hospital and includes doctor fee. But Merck has withdrawn their application for molnupiravir in Europe as it was clear it would be rejected because molnupiravir is not very useful. 

 

[thaivisareader]

In the US (SeattleWa. area), Plaxlovid is $1,300. And supplies are running low this summer.

[Arkady]

I tested positive for COVID in Bangkok yesterday. I had two days of mild symptoms, no fever and negative tests.  The second day it got better and I thought it was a common cold.  Then I woke up in the night feeling really bad with fever, terrible headache, sinus pain, worsening cough and runny nose and unable to eat anything.  I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit and found they had set up a COVID clinic in the car park with a chest X-Ray facility in the car park.   There were several other patients there.  The doctor prescribed Paxlovid which I accepted and the cost was 24,960 baht which is reasonable at least, if compared to the US and Bamrungrad prices.  I have taken three doses of Pax now and feel almost better already 24 hours later.  It might not have been the Pax.  On the other hand I might have continued to deteriorate without it. Luckily my UK insurance will pay as I called them in the traffic jam on the way to the hospital.  

 

For my previous dose of COVID in 2022 I was in the US and was given Pax free as a foreigner at a CVS branch, as that was government policy at that time.  That time I took it about 12 hours after symptoms started and never felt really ill at all, although I had a vaccine three weeks earlier.  I haven't had a vaccine now since Jan 2023. 

 

My feeling is that Paxlovid is worth it for oldies and other high risk people, although it is a tough decision, if you don't have insurance that will cover it.  If you get seriously ill and have to hospitalized, it will cost into the hundreds of thousands of baht.

[david_je]

18 hours ago, Arkady said:

I tested positive for COVID in Bangkok yesterday. I had two days of mild symptoms, no fever and negative tests.  The second day it got better and I thought it was a common cold.  Then I woke up in the night feeling really bad with fever, terrible headache, sinus pain, worsening cough and runny nose and unable to eat anything.  I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit and found they had set up a COVID clinic in the car park with a chest X-Ray facility in the car park.   There were several other patients there.  The doctor prescribed Paxlovid which I accepted and the cost was 24,960 baht which is reasonable at least, if compared to the US and Bamrungrad prices.  I have taken three doses of Pax now and feel almost better already 24 hours later.  It might not have been the Pax.  On the other hand I might have continued to deteriorate without it. Luckily my UK insurance will pay as I called them in the traffic jam on the way to the hospital.  

 

For my previous dose of COVID in 2022 I was in the US and was given Pax free as a foreigner at a CVS branch, as that was government policy at that time.  That time I took it about 12 hours after symptoms started and never felt really ill at all, although I had a vaccine three weeks earlier.  I haven't had a vaccine now since Jan 2023. 

 

My feeling is that Paxlovid is worth it for oldies and other high risk people, although it is a tough decision, if you don't have insurance that will cover it.  If you get seriously ill and have to hospitalized, it will cost into the hundreds of thousands of baht.

Thank you for posting that. Did you have any side effects from Paxlovid? What did they give you besides that? May I ask your age?

[Lorry]

On 8/15/2024 at 3:01 PM, Arkady said:

I tested positive for COVID in Bangkok yesterday. I had two days of mild symptoms, no fever and negative tests.  The second day it got better and I thought it was a common cold.  Then I woke up in the night feeling really bad with fever, terrible headache, sinus pain, worsening cough and runny nose and unable to eat anything.  I went to Samitivej Sukhumvit and found they had set up a COVID clinic in the car park with a chest X-Ray facility in the car park.   There were several other patients there.  The doctor prescribed Paxlovid which I accepted and the cost was 24,960 baht which is reasonable at least, if compared to the US and Bamrungrad prices.  I have taken three doses of Pax now and feel almost better already 24 hours later.  It might not have been the Pax.  On the other hand I might have continued to deteriorate without it. Luckily my UK insurance will pay as I called them in the traffic jam on the way to the hospital.  

 

For my previous dose of COVID in 2022 I was in the US and was given Pax free as a foreigner at a CVS branch, as that was government policy at that time.  That time I took it about 12 hours after symptoms started and never felt really ill at all, although I had a vaccine three weeks earlier.  I haven't had a vaccine now since Jan 2023. 

 

My feeling is that Paxlovid is worth it for oldies and other high risk people, although it is a tough decision, if you don't have insurance that will cover it.  If you get seriously ill and have to hospitalized, it will cost into the hundreds of thousands of baht.

Thx for posting. 

I hope you are doing fine.

 

I know that ARI clinic in the parking lot of Samitivej Sukhumvit.

May I ask what time of the day you went there and how fast (or slow) things went there? Did they do PCR or ATK?

 

I am asking because I just had a not so good experience at another private hospital,  not too far from there by taxi,  where things went very slow.

 

BTW I can confirm that Paxlovid is available at Samitivej, for the price quoted by Arkady, 24,960.

[Lorry]

On 9/4/2024 at 11:21 AM, Lorry said:

Thx for posting. 

I hope you are doing fine.

 

I know that ARI clinic in the parking lot of Samitivej Sukhumvit.

May I ask what time of the day you went there and how fast (or slow) things went there? Did they do PCR or ATK?

 

I am asking because I just had a not so good experience at another private hospital,  not too far from there by taxi,  where things went very slow.

 

BTW I can confirm that Paxlovid is available at Samitivej, for the price quoted by Arkady, 24,960.

To answer my own post:

Samitivej promotes their LAMP test (easier for them to do, took 4 hours,  4500B including doctor's fee) which also test for influenza and RSV.

(Fortunately, all negative)

[edwardflory]

Name brand drugs, ( imports ), as well as generic drugs not available in general, are usually available at THAI MILITARY HOSPITALS.  To use a MILITARY hospital you MUST get a hospital ID Card. ( free) 1st. You pay the same cost as Thai civilians using the military hospital.

[newbee2022]

On 2/8/2024 at 1:15 PM, david_je said:

When I got COVID in April 2023, Hospital for Tropical Diseases where I sought treatment told me it was only available to Thais. Was given  molnupiravir, which is not recommended as first-line treatment in U.S. 

Has anyone here recently gotten access to Paxlovid?

I am of demographic that needs it, and would like to be prepared in case I am re-infected.

Also, anyone with personal experience can recommend where to go for COVID treatment in Bangkok?

Thanks.

I can't see any reason to take Paxlovid nowadays.

Why you're looking for it?

https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-183241/paxlovid-eua-oral/details

[Arkady]

On 9/4/2024 at 11:21 AM, Lorry said:

Thx for posting. 

I hope you are doing fine.

 

I know that ARI clinic in the parking lot of Samitivej Sukhumvit.

May I ask what time of the day you went there and how fast (or slow) things went there? Did they do PCR or ATK?

 

I am asking because I just had a not so good experience at another private hospital,  not too far from there by taxi,  where things went very slow.

 

BTW I can confirm that Paxlovid is available at Samitivej, for the price quoted by Arkady, 24,960.

 

I went to the ARI clinic at Samitivej Sukhumvit about 10.00 am.  I was out about 40 minutes latter.  They gave me an ATK test.  A PCR test was available but the results take about 4 hours.  I might have had that and other tests done, if the ATK was negative but it was positive.

 

The chest X-ray showed signs of incipient pneumonia.  So the doctor told me to come back for a follow up X-ray 5 days later by which time my lungs were back to what they were before.  I felt completely better by then in all aspects except that I still had mild sore throat. 

 

I now realise that my insurance with AXA UK will not cover the entire cost of the drugs, as there is a cap of GBP 500 a year for OPD drugs. I think it was still worth it because I have no way of knowing how sick I would have been without the Paxlovid and it did seem to clear things up in 24 hours.  It might have been the same without it but better not take the risk, I think. The other medication I was given was an antihistamine, Pseudoephedrine decongestant (only available in hospitals since 2012), bronchdilating medicine to dissolve in water, codeine for cough suppression (also only available in hospitals) and paracetamol for fever.

 

My experience with Paxlovid was a lot better than when I took it in 2022.  It did seem to work then but I got the famous but milder rebound symptoms after about 2 weeks.  That time I tested positive for 21 days vs only 5 days this time. 

 

Apparently Paxlovid is available in pharmacies like Siam Drug.  I don't know their price but it should be cheaper than in hospitals.

[Lorry]

28 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

I can't see any reason to take Paxlovid nowadays.

Why you're looking for it?

https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-183241/paxlovid-eua-oral/details

 @Arkadyanswered your question. 

 

You misunderstand 2 things: an infectious disease may become rare (covid isn't rare at all) or less serious (covid is usually less serious than 4 years ago), but it may still be deadly  (thousands of Americans died this summer from covid, but they were weak and old, so many people don't care) and may still require treatment

 

Example: the plague (the Black Death) is quite rare nowadays, and rarely deadly (and only people who had contact with animals, so I don't care).

In the US, if you get the plague, you still get treatment. 

 

BTW most members of AN are weak and old, as are many farang in Thailand

[newbee2022]

7 minutes ago, Lorry said:

 @Arkadyanswered your question. 

 

You misunderstand 2 things: an infectious disease may become rare (covid isn't rare at all) or less serious (covid is usually less serious than 4 years ago), but it may still be deadly  (thousands of Americans died this summer from covid, but they were weak and old, so many people don't care) and may still require treatment

 

Example: the plague (the Black Death) is quite rare nowadays, and rarely deadly (and only people who had contact with animals, so I don't care).

In the US, if you get the plague, you still get treatment. 

 

BTW most members of AN are weak and old, as are many farang in Thailand

That's not an answer to my my question why YOU in particular looking for this questionable medication instead of going for vaccination.

But you'll have your reasons and you decided already. Ok

[Sheryl]

50 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

I can't see any reason to take Paxlovid nowadays.

Why you're looking for it?

https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-183241/paxlovid-eua-oral/details

Probably because he is in a high risk group.

 

COVID remains potentially dangerous in high risk groups.

 

Paxlovid eliminates risk of severe COVID by about 90%.  It also reduces the risk of long COVID.

 

Certainly no reason for a younger,  healthy person to take it. But for the elderly and those with other high risk factors, makes good sense.

 

It is recommended for those groups by UK NHS and other public health authorities.

[newbee2022]

2 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

Probably because he is in a high risk group.

 

COVID remains potentially dangerous in high risk groups.

 

Paxlovid eliminates risk of severe COVID by about 90%.  It also reduces the risk of long COVID.

 

Certainly no reason for a younger,  healthy person to take it. But for the elderly and those with other high risk factors, makes good sense.

You forgot to mention the side effects. 

[Lorry]

29 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

That's not an answer to my my question why YOU in particular looking for this questionable medication instead of going for vaccination.

But you'll have your reasons and you decided already. Ok

I am vaccinated, what makes you think I am not.

Paxlovid is not questionable at all.

Like @ArkadyI have very good experiences with it. No side effects at all.

Of course I wouldn't take it if I were a healthy 30 y.o., it goes without saying it's only for risk groups.

 

Paxlovid does have lots of interactions with other medications,  so you can't just buy  and take it. You have to know, which medications you are taking already,  and how to handle this. So, you really need a doctor.

You are not interested in a rational discussion, but others may read this.

[Sheryl]

35 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

You forgot to mention the side effects. 

 

 

"There are no known serious side effects with Paxlovid."

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/paxlovid/side-effects-of-paxlovid/

 

About 10% of people get GI upset or altered sense of taste.

 

Hardly reason not to take it.

 

The more limiting factor is that it has interactions with many other medications, which may necessitate discontinuing them temporarily.

 

 

 

 

[newbee2022]

1 minute ago, Sheryl said:

 

 

"There are no known serious side effects with Paxlovid."

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/paxlovid/side-effects-of-paxlovid/

 

About 10% of people get GI upset or altered sense of taste.

 

Hardly reasonsn ot to take it.

 

The more limiting factor is that it has interactions with many other medications, which may necessitate discontinuing them temporarily.

 

 

 

 

No, that is only part of the story.  In many cases we had an rebound of viral load. Also, many old "high risk" patients take several medicines at the same time, which cause severe interactions. 

But I'm sure you're aware of it.

[newbee2022]

10 minutes ago, Lorry said:

I am vaccinated, what makes you think I am not.

Paxlovid is not questionable at all.

Like @ArkadyI have very good experiences with it. No side effects at all.

Of course I wouldn't take it if I were a healthy 30 y.o., it goes without saying it's only for risk groups.

 

Paxlovid does have lots of interactions with other medications,  so you can't just buy  and take it. You have to know, which medications you are taking already,  and how to handle this. So, you really need a doctor.

You are not interested in a rational discussion, but others may read yhis.

www will give you all information. End off

[newbee2022]

10 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

 

 

"There are no known serious side effects with Paxlovid."

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/paxlovid/side-effects-of-paxlovid/

 

About 10% of people get GI upset or altered sense of taste.

 

Hardly reasonsn ot to take it.

 

The more limiting factor is that it has interactions with many other medications, which may necessitate discontinuing them temporarily.

 

 

 

 

You should know better

[Letseng]

2 hours ago, edwardflory said:

Name brand drugs, ( imports ), as well as generic drugs not available in general, are usually available at THAI MILITARY HOSPITALS.  To use a MILITARY hospital you MUST get a hospital ID Card. ( free) 1st. You pay the same cost as Thai civilians using the military hospital.

And where is a military hospital in Bangkok?