Travel Medicine · Compare
Use an in-person travel clinic when you need vaccines (yellow fever, typhoid shots, rabies, Japanese encephalitis), a complex or high-risk itinerary, pregnancy, or young children. Use online travel medicine when you need common prescriptions and no shots: malaria pills for a region where doxycycline or Malarone is appropriate, altitude pills, a motion-sickness patch, a standby antibiotic for traveler's diarrhea, or an epinephrine refill. Many trips need only the second kind, which is faster and cheaper. Bidwell does the online part for a flat $45 and refers you to a clinic for anything that needs a needle or an exam.
| In-person travel clinic | Online travel medicine (Bidwell) | |
|---|---|---|
| Vaccines (yellow fever, typhoid shot, rabies, hepatitis A) | Yes. This is the main thing a clinic does that online cannot. | No. We do not give shots and refer you to a clinic for these. |
| Common prescriptions (malaria, altitude, motion sickness, traveler's diarrhea, epinephrine) | Yes, usually alongside the visit. | Yes. Sent to your own pharmacy, no markup. |
| Format | In person, by appointment, often booked a week or more ahead. | Asynchronous online, no video, usually same day. |
| Typical cost | Consult alone often $100 or more, plus each vaccine. | Flat $45 visit, plus the generic at your pharmacy. |
| Best for | Vaccine-required countries, pregnancy, children, immune problems, or complex multi-region trips. | Straightforward trips that need pills, not shots, including last-minute ones. |
| Cannot do | Nothing travel-specific, but costs more and takes longer for simple needs. | Vaccines, new diagnoses, mefloquine itineraries, and anything that needs an exam. |
Bidwell Health is online travel medicine for adults 18 to 64 in 11 states (Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Virginia, and Washington), and nowhere else, including not New York. We prescribe for motion sickness, altitude, traveler's diarrhea, malaria (doxycycline or Malarone), and epinephrine refills, for a flat $45, with the prescription sent to your own pharmacy. We do not give vaccines, diagnose new allergies, or handle trips that need a drug we do not prescribe online, and we refer you to a travel clinic for those. The full scope, with sources and review dates, is published at our travel medicine page.
You can do it online when you need common prescriptions and no shots: malaria pills for a region where doxycycline or Malarone is appropriate, altitude pills, a motion sickness patch, a standby antibiotic for traveler's diarrhea, or an epinephrine refill. You need an in-person travel clinic when you need vaccines such as yellow fever or a typhoid shot, when your itinerary needs a drug we do not prescribe online such as mefloquine, or for pregnancy, young children, or complex high-risk trips. Bidwell handles the online part for a flat $45 and refers you to a clinic for the rest.
No. Yellow fever vaccine must be given in person at an authorized vaccination center, which then provides your stamped certificate. No online service can do this. We refer you to a travel clinic for yellow fever and other travel shots, and can still handle your malaria pills or altitude medicine online if your trip needs them.
A travel-clinic consult alone is often $100 or more before any vaccines, and each vaccine adds to that. Online travel medicine is cheaper for the prescription needs it covers: Bidwell is a flat $45 visit, and you pay the generic medication price at your own pharmacy with no markup. If you need vaccines, a clinic is worth it; if you only need pills, online is usually less.
Yes, when the service screens you properly and refers out what it cannot safely handle. Bidwell is run by a board-certified nurse practitioner who is a Member of the International Society of Travel Medicine, sources from the CDC Yellow Book, prescribes only where it is appropriate, and says plainly when a trip needs an in-person clinic instead.