YELLOW FEVER Vaccination - Do you need it if you're coming to Costa Rica?

Contrary to what your pharmaceutical•vaccination•pill hungry Western medicine doctor might say, Costa Rica does not require vaccinations to enter for MOST people (people - we do NOT currently have a problem with Malaria!!!).

Currently, the ONLY vaccination Costa Rica requires for a SMALL group of people coming from a few countries (INCLUDING some LATIN AMERICAN countries) where there MAY be a risk of catching the disease there and bringing it to Costa Rica is

YELLOW FEVER.

What's ironic is even Columbia does NOT require a Yellow Fever Vaccination UNLESS one is going to more remote areas!!

So, according to Costa Rica Embassy’s website:

Costarica-embassy.org/?q=node/72#5

If you will be traveling TO Costa Rica from the following countries (via airplane, ship, or land borders), you WILL need the YELLOW FEVER VACCINE.

LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES YOU'VE BEEN IN that Costa Rica
REQUIRES you to have a YELLOW FEVER VACCINATION from are:

Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela.

The sub-Saharan Africa countries considered at risk are:
Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan.

YIKES!!  I JUST REALIZED I NEED THIS SHOT BUT I'M LEAVING NEXT WEEK!!

Sorry Charlie!!  According to the Costa Rican Embassy's site,

you can NOT enter Costa Rica till at LEAST 10 days AFTER your shot.

I know this first hand as I have know 2 separate sets of people that were refused entry into Costa Rica because of this.  One were speakers at a seminar for them which had to be cancelled the day before as they supposedly make NO EXCEPTIONS!!! 

EXCEPTIONS
From Costarica-Embassy.org/index.php?q=node/97

People who have been in countries considered at risk, but who have

remained AT LEAST 6 days in a non-risk country before entering Costa Rican 

territory and who haven’t developed the yellow fever.

People with contraindications for the vaccination against yellow fever who carry a valid medical opinion supported by the health authority in the country from where they are from.

Children under 9 months old, people with severe allergy to eggs, immunosuppression and thymic disease present or in their medical history.

There must be a medical assessment of the pros and cons of vaccination on people with the following conditions: over 60 years of age, pregnancy, lactation, family history of adverse events associated with vaccination against yellow fever, hypersensitivity to gelatin and asymptomatic HIV infection, with laboratory verification of adequate immune system function.

Any individual traveling to Costa Rica that has been in transit through: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan and French Guyana, whether in airports, sea ports or land borders, will be exempt from the requirement of vaccination against yellow fever.




If you're coming from one of the "at risk" countries, you must present their current and endorsed International Certificate of Vaccination against the Yellow Fever. If you do not have it - guess what - you will NOT be let in to Costa Rica!!  And if you were "lucky" enough to get TO Costa Rica, you're flying back (or wherever you choose) on YOUR dime as the airlines are not responsible for your mistake.

HOW LONG IS THE YELLOW FEVER VACCINE GOOD FOR?

The international Yellow Fever Vaccine Certificate is good for 10 days after you received the shot - for 10 years.

I FIT INTO ONE OF THE EXEMPT CATEGORIES ABOVE - NOW WHAT?

NOTE on these exceptions, if you live in Costa Rica and are going to be taking a vacation to one of the above countries and are wanting an Exemption, you must FIRST present to

You need to get an OFFICIAL reason issued by the Ministerio de Salud in Costa Rica with the legal stamps and official seal
 present the certificate before the Department of Health prior to their exit of the country. 

NON-resident foreigners with exemption MUST present their medical certification endorsed by the country´s Health authority (I think for the U.S. that would be the CDC??  I'm checking on this), PRIOR to entering to Costa Rica.


NOTE:  I have seen that per a constitutional mandate - Costa Rican CITIZENS

can NOT be denied entry into Costa Rica if they have not had this or any vaccine.

PLEASE EDUCATE YOURSELF ON POTENTIAL SIDE EFFECTS OF THE YELLOW FEVER VACCINATION AND ALL OTHERS - TO MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION - TO SEE IF VISITING COUNTRIES WHICH MAKE YOUR TIME THERE REASON YOU HAVE TO PUT THIS IN YOUR BODY:

RXList.com/yellow-fever-vaccine-drug/patient-images-side-effects.htm

http://www.medicinenet.com/yellow_fever/article.htm

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