The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has recently updated its guidance for cruise ships operating in U.S. waters to provide specific information for passengers and crew on how to protect themselves from infectious diseases while they are on board.
All cruise ships now have a “notice to passenger” in the cabin which should be read prior to when the ship makes a U-turn and begins the process of returning to port. It is a precautionary measure in case a passenger becomes ill during the cruise.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated its guidance for cruise ships to help reduce the risks of getting sick when you are on board.. Read more about cdc guidelines for cruise ships 2024 and let us know what you think.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated the Conditional Sail Order with additional language (CSO). This is the first time the CSO has been updated since May 26. The new regulations stipulate that cruise ship operators must not only have protocols in place for unvaccinated passengers in US ports, but also have procedures in place to deal with COVID outbreaks in all international ports. This ties into the insurance policies that cruise companies have been implementing in recent weeks.
Updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the CSO
The CDC’s updates on the Conditional Sail Order come at a time when ships have already been sailing for many weeks. Perhaps the CDC discovered flaws in its processes and is currently working to correct them. The CDC also changed its procedures for testing crew members on board, moving from 14-day intervals to 7-day intervals if the vessel is not in ‘Green’ condition.
When unvaccinated passengers have been verified as positive for COVID-19 aboard the ship or have not been declared negative in the last 90 days when the ship is traveling to foreign ports, the new rules guarantee that cruise ships and cruise firms have comprehensive procedures in place.
The CDC’s website
The revised procedures should outline how the cruise ship plans to unload and lodge individuals with COVID-19 who need shore-based medical care for themselves and their travel companions for the length of the quarantine or isolation period. It should also detail how cruise lines plan to repatriate a US resident with COVID and close connections. On their website, the CDC states:
“At all international ports of call, cruise ship operators must have a plan for handling individuals with COVID-19 and close contacts who are not completely vaccinated and have not recovered from COVID-19 in the preceding 90 days.”
- Persons with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 who need shore-based medical treatment and their travel companion(s) are disembarked and housed for the length of their isolation or quarantine period.
- Commercial repatriation of COVID-19 infected people in the United States and their close connections will be allowed only when they have met the CDC’s requirements for ending isolation and quarantine. Cruise ship operators must engage with the applicable public health authorities for commercial repatriation of foreign-based individuals with COVID-19 close connections.
It seems that before a US citizen is permitted to return to the US, cruise companies must guarantee that the individual and their close connections undergo quarantine in a foreign nation before returning to the US.
Most cruise companies, however, have already devised a solution by providing quarantine rooms aboard. When large-scale epidemics occur aboard, this precaution will be activated. With the existing safeguards in place, this is very improbable.
Brenda Rocha – Blossom / Shutterstock.com photo
Insurance Requirements Have Changed
Carnival and Royal Caribbean were fully aware of the CSO’s impending reforms. In recent weeks, cruise lines have introduced new programs that require all non-vaccinated passengers aboard to purchase an emergency repatriation insurance package.
Both cruise lines now require all unvaccinated passengers to be properly insured with a coverage amount of at least $30.000. They’ve also begun charging passengers for extra testing throughout and towards the conclusion of the cruise. Only last week, Carnival posted the following on their website:
“At the time of check-in, each unvaccinated visitor must provide evidence of a valid travel insurance policy with a minimum of $10,000 in medical cost coverage and $30,000 in emergency medical evacuation coverage, with no COVID-19 exclusions. Guests who do not have evidence of insurance will not be allowed to sail and will not be refunded.”
Carnival Cruise Line is departing from both Florida and Texas with a required vaccine requirement, which means that no more than 5% of passengers will be unvaccinated. In Florida, Royal Caribbean has dropped the vaccination requirement in favor of sailing with both vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers.
Also read: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Lowers the Cruise Ship Warning Level Advisory
The CDC’s new regulations require cruise companies to establish port agreements with not just US ports, but also any international ports they visit, adding another layer of regulations that will make cruise lines more hesitant to sail with passengers who have not been vaccinated.
Since the 1960s, cruise ships have been required to provide this guidance to the public, as part of a safety package that is intended to be helpful. However, in a change that came into effect on October 22nd, the CDC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has relaxed the guidance, so that it no longer includes any mention of the need to go to the bathroom, and now merely suggests that passengers should pay attention to any instruction issued by a crew member, and avoid any situation that involves risk, such as walking around the deck in bare feet.. Read more about cruise restrictions 2024 and let us know what you think.
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- cdc guidelines for cruise ships 2024
- cdc no sail order updates
- cdc no sail order 2024
- cruise restrictions 2024
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