There are 12 snake species in Idaho, and none are maybe as harmful because the Western rattlesnake and prairie rattlesnake, Idaho’s two venomous snakes.
Although rattlesnakes are usually not aggressive, they are going to strike when threatened or provoked by unaware hikers and climbers within the Boise Foothills and mountains of Idaho. Not solely do the bites harm you bodily, however the antivenom value can even harm your pockets.
But the place are you able to get antivenom, and the way a lot does it cost?
How a lot does snake antivenom cost?
The St. Luke’s and Saint Alphonsus well being methods carry vials of snake antivenom.
According to Scott Milner, regional director of pharmacy for Saint Alphonsus, therapy for a snake chew begins at 10 vials of antivenom.
“These antivenom therapies are unique as the doses administered are not adjusted to body weight/size/age of the patient, which is very different,” Milner advised the Idaho Statesman in a 2022 e-mail. “The dose is calculated to match the venom as tracked by expansion of signs/symptoms, but the starting dose is 10 vials at a time.”
The two essential antivenoms for snake bites are Crotalidae Polyvalent Immune Fab Ovine, or CroFab, and Crotalidae immune F(ab’)2 (equine), higher often known as Anavip.
“Anavip has full coverage against the American pit vipers that includes rattlesnakes, copperheads and cottonmouths,” Milner stated. “Idaho is really only home to the Western rattlesnake and the prairie rattlesnake, so this therapy covers our population.”
You can even discover hospitals that inventory CroFab on-line by getting into your location into an interactive map.
According to Kaiser Health News, a nonprofit journalistic institute targeted on well being information, a vial of Anavip prices $1,220. Snakebite remedy, with a minimal dosage of 10 vials, would cost no less than $12,220, plus different related prices with the hospital go to.
CroFab is much more costly, in keeping with KHN, coming in at $3,198 per vial.
Why is snake antivenom so costly?
Several components contribute to the excessive costs of antivenom.
First, antivenom is difficult to make. The frequent antivenom used to deal with rattlesnake bites, for instance, is made by immunizing donor animals akin to horses or sheep with snake venom after which harvesting the antibodies produced by these animals, in keeping with the World Health Organization.
However, the cost of constructing antivenom solely accounts for about one-tenth of 1 p.c of the whole cost of the therapy, in keeping with analysis from the VIPER Institute on the University of Arizona.
According to the VIPER Institute’s analysis, the remainder of the sticker value for antivenom is made up of prices akin to licensing charges and authorized bills, which account for about 28% of the cost, and hospital markups — that are usually discounted by well being insurers for sufferers with protection — which account for about 70% of the worth.
Additionally, since snakebites are comparatively unusual — although the CDC says about 8,000 persons are bitten by venomous snakes annually — the antivenom market is comparatively small, and there isn’t an enormous demand or marketplace for the product.
