When I was in medical school, I read the original article demonstrating Koch's Postulates concerning the varicella-zoster connection. It was in the NEJM, and it described a "transmissible, filterable agent" that, when taken from zoster (shingles) lesions, could transmit chicken pox only to people who had never had it. (They extrapolated this from mice.) Nobody ever caught shingles primarily and nobody who had not had chicken pox ever got shingles. Brilliant, simple and elegant.
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People reportedly do not contract Shingles from other people with Shingles. Shingles is not contagious period here, reportedly--except with the few persons who have have neither been afflicted nor vaccinated against Chickenpox. I'm unaware of encountering any such person.
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Got the new vaccine two weeks ago at the pharmacy.
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About three years ago my husband had shingles at 67 years old and I developed chickenpox a couple of weeks later at 61. Since I didn't know if I had had the disease as a child, I was tested and it showed I had no antibodies for it. So we tried to live as separately as we could in our apartment but I got it anyway. It wasn't so bad, my doctor saw me a day after I experienced the prodome and prescribed me an antiviral drug. It took weeks for the pox's to really go away and I had to stay indoors since I had a communicable disease. Now I'm afraid I'll get shingles and he'll get it again and we can't afford the vaccines. So I can attest to the fact that it really is contagious if you haven't had chicken pox.
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Safeway pharmacy is giving the Shingrix vaccine (and 2nd dose) and it is FREE !!!
Google: Free Shingrix (for other sources)
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The Shingrix vaccine offers excellent protection against getting shingles. However, there is a lot of confusion about the extent to which a person's Part D Medicare coverage will cover the vaccine. My informal survey of friends (and myself) shows that coverage has ranged from about 80% to zero. I had to pay $160 for my first of two vaccinations. In other words, no coverage from my Part D insurance. Be prepared to pay a lot of money for the Shingrix vaccine.
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My PCP said Medicare does not cover the new vaccine if it's given in their office and wrote a script for me to receive it elsewhere such as a pharmacy. I'll find out how that works shortly.
Mary Ann: Costco's pharmacy charged me $159 for the first shot. The pharmacist said my Part D drug coverage did not cover any of the cost.
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I thought either my Medicare or supplement would pay for at least a good chunk of the cost, but when I went to Costco it was nearly full price. My PCP had told me a lot of the smaller physicians’ offices didn’t have it yet, but as far as they knew it would not be covered for some times, if ever. I’m afraid to wait as I dread getting shingles a second time.
It’s absolutely disgraceful that the high price will prevent so many people from receiving it.
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