Latest news with #Flu
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Health
- Newsweek
Passenger Reveals Cost of Getting Sick on Cruise Ship: 'Seaway Robbery'
As cruise ships operate as self-contained environments, their onboard medical systems must be equipped to handle emergencies around the clock, contributing to higher prices for treatment. "Cruise-ship medical costs can be surprisingly high because onboard medical facilities operate similarly to urgent care centers in the United States," board-certified family medicine physician Dr. Brynna Connor told Newsweek. She is a health-care ambassador at Connor said: "Because there are limited resources and 24/7 availability—per the American College of Emergency Physicians guidelines, ships must have medical personnel on call 24 hours in case of medical emergencies—you're paying not only for treatment, but you're also paying for the convenience and logistics of receiving medical care in a somewhat-remote environment." Connor said that expenses increase sharply when specialized tools are involved. "When you add in the cost of specialized equipment—RT-PCR machines for COVID/Flu/RSV tests fall under the category of specialized equipment—the bill can increase exponentially and very quickly," she added. For those looking to avoid such expenses, Connor stressed the importance of preparation. "To minimize the chance of needing medical care and avoid a potentially hefty bill, there are ways travelers can help themselves, starting with scheduling an appointment with their health-care provider at least four to six weeks before traveling to discuss any potential health risks at the destinations, necessary vaccinations, and/or preventive medications," Connor said. In addition, she urged travelers to consider coverage options. "Travelers should also look into travel medical insurance, which is specifically designed to cover unexpected illnesses or injuries while traveling abroad—typically these policies will reimburse medical bills for costs like emergency treatment, hospital stays, surgeries, doctor visits, and/or prescription medications—and/or comprehensive travel insurance, which often includes travel medical coverage in addition to other benefits." Connor also recommended taking basic precautions once aboard. "Avoid high-risk food items, such as street food while at port, and drink only bottled or purified water, especially when traveling internationally, as food poisoning and dehydration are common reasons travelers end up in the ship's infirmary," she said. "Also, limit alcohol consumption, which can impair judgment and contribute to dehydration or accidents." Even for the prepared, Connor advised carrying critical items. "It's a good idea to travel with a fully stocked personal aid kit, including anti-nausea medication—particularly useful on cruises—pain relievers, hand sanitizer, and/or any prescription medications," she said. "Make sure if you're portioning out medications; take enough to cover extra days in case of travel delays." Connor recommended having your medical insurance information on hand and checking whether your policy includes international or cruise coverage, or purchasing travel insurance with medical benefits before setting sail. Connor added that many U.S. policies may not offer sufficient coverage. "Many U.S. health-insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, offer limited or no coverage outside the United States. As such, hospitals and doctors in most other countries don't accept American health-insurance plans and will ask for payment up-front, which contributes to a significantly larger bill than you might expect," she said. 'Seaway Robbery' Reddit users were shocked by the cruise travel medical costs highlighted in the viral post. "Over $100 to slap a fingertip pulse ox sensor on you?? What is this nightmare," wrote u/LowVoltCharlie. Another commenter, u/OccasionMU, broke down the charges: "$219 to be admitted to the hospital. Then another $219 to be seen by a doctor. Then $274 for a COVID test. Haha." U/Powerful-Economist42 noted: "That's when you call them and negotiate. Both those were after the initial $199 for the visit. Seaway robbery." For many Reddit users, the lesson from u/ultranothing's post was clear. "That's why you never travel without travel medical insurance," said u/Prosecco1234. "Don't go on a cruise without cruise insurance. You took the risk," wrote u/Salt_Quality_9132. Others echoed the advice. "This is why you never—NEVER—travel outside the country without insurance," added u/Jaydamic. U/EuphoricPines2448 posted: "The more I learn about cruises, the less I ever want to go on one! Sorry you are in this situation OP [original poster]." Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via the Reddit messaging system. Stock image: A woman appears stressed while looking at documents at a desk with a laptop and calculator at hand. Stock image: A woman appears stressed while looking at documents at a desk with a laptop and calculator at hand. Getty Do you have a travel-related video or story to share? Let us know via life@ and your story could be featured on Newsweek.
ABC News
6 days ago
- Health
- ABC News
Influenza B is hitting Australian children hard this flu season as vaccination uptake slows
After missing her flu vaccine for just one year Millie Campbell was fighting for her life. The then-eight-year-old contracted Influenza B in 2019 and, what started with aches and pains in her legs, led to multiple organ failure. "They had to drain 200 millilitres of fluid from her heart — it was struggling," her mother Stephanie Campbell said. "I think the doctor's words were 'your daughter could die tonight'." Millie was taken by rescue helicopter from Newcastle to Westmead Children's Hospital in Sydney but soon after arriving she went into cardiac arrest. "It was very, very surreal, it actually felt like at the time it wasn't happening," Millie's dad, Ian Campbell, said. "There was no indication she was going to survive," Ms Campbell said. When the doctors told Millie's parents the underlying cause of her illness was Influenza B they were shocked. "We were blissfully ignorant to the fact it can be a killer," Mr Campbell said. "People always think, 'Oh it won't happen to our kids'." Millie was fit, healthy and had no pre-existing conditions but had to spend weeks in intensive care and six months in hospital. She had to learn to walk again and eventually had to have her left foot up to her ankle amputated because of peripheral circulation damage from being on life support for so long. "Millie's recovery will be a lifelong journey … and seeing how severe the flu can be, our message is: really to talk to your medical practitioner about the vaccine," Ms Campbell said. This year, Australia has seen much higher rates of Influenza B than last year, particularly in children aged five to 16 years old, despite Influenza A being the more prominent virus type. Influenza A and B present similarly, but type B can be more severe in children. The influenza vaccine contains two strains of the A virus and two of the B. "[Influenza B] often gets a reduced awareness due to influenza A, probably because A is normally associated with pandemics," said Patrick Reading, director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza. Children currently make up the highest proportion of Influenza B cases in Australian hospitals but the reason for that is unknown. "It's a bit of a mystery. It's an association that we see, but we can't say there's something specific about the virus that means it infects more children over adults," Professor Reading said. Flu vaccination rates have been sliding since the COVID-19 pandemic and the group most impacted by Influenza B — the five to 16-year-old age group — now have the lowest vaccination uptake of all ages. "In 2022 we had high rates across all age groups and now we have so many unvaccinated people, which means we have a larger cohort of people who are susceptible to infection," Professor Reading said. He said this fading immunity was putting significant pressure on the health system and the worst might be still to come. "We see elevated [influenza] circulation throughout August, September and October, so it's definitely not too late to get vaccinated," he said. Millie's parents had been strict with vaccinations but once she was over the age of five they believed she was less at risk of getting seriously ill from the flu. Influenza vaccines are free under the National Immunisation Program (NIP) for specific groups considered to be at greatest risk, including children aged between six months and five years old. Outside of that age group the vaccine costs around $25 and becomes free again for people 65 and over. But the age restrictions may be confusing some people, said Julie Leask, a social scientist with a focus on vaccination and prevention of infectious diseases. "I don't think the risk-based strategy is working well for Australia," Professor Leask said. "When the vaccine is on the [NIP] it's a real signal to people that this vaccine is important and it's also a signal to health professionals to recommend the vaccine … we still unfortunately see some [doctors] saying the vaccine isn't a good idea for kids." For a vaccine to be free for all it must be deemed cost effective by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. The committee has previously knocked back an application for a universal free flu vaccine but Professor Leask strongly supports the idea. "I think the Australian government needs to consider whether we can make the flu vaccine free for everybody aged six months and over, because then it will become a bit more institutionalised into our systems and simple to communicate." Research has found the most common reasons people don't get their children vaccinated include: Throw in anti-vaccine rhetoric, which has ramped up since the Trump administration took office in the US, and it's a complex picture. Over the last six months, US health secretary and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr has been recirculating disproved myths about vaccines causing autism and walked back COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children and pregnant women. Professor Leask is convinced Mr Kennedy's messaging will cut through in Australia. "We are seeing from the US this kind of mainstreaming of misinformation … we will see the impacts of that to some degree in Australia," she said. Millie now has a prosthetic left leg and while swimming was originally part of her rehabilitation program, it is now a central part of her life. The now-14-year-old has become a competitive swimmer who has won multiple gold medals at national championships and qualified for the recent World Trials held in Adelaide. She now has her sights set on the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles. Millie's influenza battle has a hard-fought happy ending, but her parents are worried about Australia's changing attitude towards vaccination. "This growing hesitancy seems to be driven by the inability of people to decipher between evidence-based information and misinformation on social media," Mr Campbell said. "I understand the predicament because most people spend more of their life on social media but I would encourage people to speak with health experts. "Vaccination benefits not only you but the community."
Hamilton Spectator
6 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Microbix Exhibiting & Presenting at ADLM
MISSISSAUGA, Ontario, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Microbix Biosystems Inc. (TSX: MBX, OTCQX: MBXBF, Microbix®), a life sciences innovator, manufacturer, and exporter, announces that it will be attending, exhibiting, and presenting at the Association for Diagnostic & Laboratory Medicine ('ADLM') conference taking place in Chicago, Illinois July 28 to 31, 2025. At ADLM, Microbix will exhibit alongside leading firms that provide tests to diagnose and direct treatment of many infectious and other diseases. Microbix will thereby showcase its ever-growing portfolio of quality assessment products ('QAPs™') that help ensure the accuracy of antigen and molecular (i.e., 'PCR' or 'NAAT') tests and their workflows. Microbix will also be meeting with many current and prospective clients to determine how best to support their quality management system needs. Also at ADLM, Microbix will present results of a pilot External Quality Assessment (EQA) program enabled by Microbix QAPs. Its poster is titled 'Quality Control Rapid Response in Pre-Pandemic Preparedness Showcasing a Synthetic H5N1 Genetic Template.' which reviews the performance of novel QAPs for answering the critical question of whether pre-existing molecular tests for Influenza A can accurately detect the emerging H5N1 (Bird Flu) pandemic strain. A Microbix customer and collaborator, American Proficiency Institute ('API'), is presenting a related poster titled 'Evaluation of NAAT Recovery of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Clade 2.3.4.4b from Novel Proficiency Samples.' After each poster is presented at ADLM, they will be made available at . The two posters detail the results of work first announced on January 13, 2025, whereby Microbix and API disclosed the creation of QAPs and a pilot proficiency testing program for evaluating the performance of Flu tests in detecting H5N1. As widely reported in the media, H5N1 Flu is a novel variant for which the human population does not have established immunity. Accordingly, H5N1 Flu has pandemic potential, with it having thus far caused severe disease or death in approximately 50% of those persons infected. Microbix gratefully acknowledges the vital role of API in helping to conduct this societally important work. Amer Alagic, Microbix's Director of R&D and lead author of its poster commented, 'Working alongside API, our team is privileged to help answer vital questions concerning the accuracy and usefulness of currently available Flu tests for detecting H5N1. Microbix's novel H5N1 QAPs were created by our team to ensure full genetic coverage of a potential pandemic strain and were made safely under Microbix IP and with cutting-edge synthetic biology techniques. H5N1 QAPs are fully-characterized, accurately-quantified, and are available in liquid and FLOQSwab formats to support both lab-based and point-of-care assays. These Microbix capabilities can be rapidly deployed in response to any emerging pandemic.' Purchase enquiries for these or other Microbix QAPs can be e-mailed to . About Microbix Biosystems Inc. Microbix Biosystems Inc. creates proprietary biological products for human health, with over 120 skilled employees and revenues targeting C$ 2.0 million or more per month. It enables the worldwide commercialization of diagnostic assays by making a wide range of critical ingredients and devices for the global diagnostics industry, notably antigens for immunoassays and its laboratory quality assessment products (QAPs™) that support clinical lab proficiency-testing, enable assay development and validation, or help ensure the quality of clinical diagnostic workflows. Its antigens drive the antibody tests of approximately 100 diagnostics makers, while QAPs are sold to clinical lab accreditation organizations, diagnostics companies, and clinical labs. Microbix QAPs are now available in over 30 countries, supported by a network of international distributors. Microbix is ISO 9001 & 13485 accredited, U.S. FDA registered, Australian TGA registered, Health Canada establishment licensed, and provides IVDR-compliant CE marked products. Microbix also applies its biological expertise and infrastructure to develop other proprietary products and technologies, most notably Kinlytic® urokinase, a biologic thrombolytic drug used to treat blood clots, and reagents or media to support molecular diagnostic testing (e.g., its DxTM™ for patient-sample collection). Microbix is traded on the TSX and OTCQX, and headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Forward-Looking Information This news release includes 'forward-looking information,' as such term is defined in applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, discussion of API, the pilot proficiency testing program, the H5N1 QAPs, or their relevance, Microbix's or others' products or services, business and business results, goals or outlook, risks associated with financial results and stability, development projects such as those referenced in its presentations, regulatory compliance and approvals, access and sales to foreign jurisdictions, engineering and construction, production (including control over costs, quality, quantity or timeliness of delivery), currency exchange rates, maintaining adequate working capital or raising new capital on acceptable terms or at all, and other similar statements about anticipated future events, conditions or results that are not historical facts. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions, and expectations; they are not guarantees of future performance. Microbix cautions that all forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and actual performance may be affected by many material factors, some of which are beyond its control. Accordingly, actual future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions, and expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. All statements are made as of the date of this news release and represent Microbix's judgement as of the date of this new release, and it is under no obligation to update or alter any forward-looking information. Please visit or for recent Microbix news and filings. For further information, please contact Microbix at: Copyright © 2025 Microbix Biosystems Inc. Microbix®, DxTM™, Kinlytic®, and QAPs™ are trademarks of Microbix Biosystems Inc. FLOQ® and FLOQSwab® are trademarks of Copan Italia S.p.A. Other companies' names and products are protected by their respective trademarks.
Yomiuri Shimbun
18-06-2025
- Health
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japan Suspends Imports of Fertile Eggs, Day-Old Chicks from Two Brazilian States
Reuters Test tubes are seen labelled 'Bird Flu' words in this illustration taken, June 10, 2024. SAO PAULO, June 17 (Reuters) – Japan suspended imports of fertile eggs and day-old chicks coming from the Brazilian states of Goias and Mato Grosso after bird flu cases in subsistence farms had been reported in both states, the Brazilian Agriculture Ministry said on Tuesday. In a statement, the ministry added that Japan also suspended all poultry meat imports from the cities where the cases were reported, Santo Antonio da Barra in Goias and Campinapolis in Mato Grosso.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Fighting against the spread of Measles
Rapid City, S.D. (KELO) — An increased number of measles cases is spreading across the country, with one case being reported in Meade County earlier this week. Public safety alert issued for 'dangerous subject' at large The current cases of Measles started from people who have come back to the country from international travels where measles is endemic. 'The virus is taking hold in communities where vaccination rates are low and that's the really tough thing, measles is incredibly contagious. Experts estimate that we need to have a 95% vaccination rate or better in order to prevent outbreaks from taking hold,' Monument Health Pediatrician Dr. Paula Marsland said. These percentages have dropped to around 90% across the country. Medical professionals are recommending the MMR vaccine (Measles-Mumps-Rubella Vaccination), something that has remained the same for the past 50 years. 'It's not hanging out in animals, it's hanging out in humans. And so as we try to eradicate it, the only way to do that is to stop the transmission of human to human. That's why I mentioned previously, it's highly contagious. Measles is three times more contagious than the Flu, than Covid, than Ebola,' Dr. Marsland said. The last time this many cases happened in the country was back in 2019, when over 1,200 cases were reported for the entire year. 'And then once symptoms show up, folks are infectious from roughly four or five days before the rash starts to four days after the rash starts. So that's a good eight to nine-day period where they are infectious. So certainly if you had somebody with a positive measles case, we'd want them to quarantine until at least four days after the rash started,' Dr. Marsland said. Currently, there have been over 1,100 cases this year, with over two-thirds being in people ages 19 and younger. The measles vaccine is typically given between 12-15 months of age with the second dose of MMR given in the range of 4-6 years of age. If you want to learn more about next steps in preventing measles, talk to your medical professional or find more informaiton here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
