RSV Vaccine

I was not aware than a vaccine for RSV existed until a nurse in the NICU mentioned it to me. It is extremely expensive per dose, so it is not routinely administered to newborns, but is available for those who are at high-risk of contracting and experiencing severe symptoms of RSV. I asked the neonatologist about it, and she said that the primary criterion for administration of the vaccine at the hospital was birth before 35 weeks of gestation, so even though Ryan has the risk factors of having had major respiratory complications and also has a pre-school age sibling at home, he would not be given the vaccine at the hospital. Our pediatrician brought up the vaccine during our first appointment with him and said that he could submit a request for approval of the vaccine to our insurance company based on Ryan's circumstances. He said that in the past some requests had not been approved, but a few had been approved, so it was worth a try. We got a call from a nurse at our pediatrician's office today notifying us that our insurance company has approved Ryan to receive the vaccine and (at $1000 per dose) it will be completely covered by insurance. What a huge praise! The vaccine will dramatically reduce Ryan's risk of contracting RSV and will be given in 2 doses (each dose is effective for 28-30 days). These 2 doses should last Ryan through almost the entire RSV season which winds down around the end of April. If anyone local needs a recommendation for a pediatrician please let me know. I cannot say enough great things about our's and his office staff- they have been wonderful with both of our kids. Thanks so much for recommending him to me Staci!