Aaron and Nika's doctor has decided to add the Pneumococcal vaccine into their list of shots. The vaccine is suppose to protect a child from pneumonia, as well as sinusitis, meningitis and a bunch of other illnesses. At first the vaccine was optional, but last week the doctor told us that the Pediatric Association decided to add it to the list of essential shots to be given to babies ages 2 to 23 months. The vaccine is to be taken in every two months until the eight month, with a total of four shots.
Since it was now part of the essential vaccines to be taken, we had Nika injected. The cost of the vaccine and doctor's fee came up to around 4.5k! I could not believe such a small dose would be that expensive and I had to pay for eight of these vaccines for my two kids! Jen went online and checked the local price of the vaccine. Someone at sulit.com.ph was selling the vaccine at 4.1k. So we were sure that the vaccine was around the 4k price range.
This means I would be setting aside a budget of around 36k for Aaron and Nika's vaccine. Since Nika had her shot this month, I told Jen to let Aaron get his first shot next month. That way, I would be paying out an average of 4.5k monthly.
Adding the numbers, I immediately thought about the other families who do not have the money to pay for this medicine. These parents would choose not to have their kids vaccinated. I doubt if there are any other cheaper versions of this vaccine and the local baranggays won't have this on their list of free medicine as well.
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