CDC: CRUISES WON’T HAVE TO REQUIRE VACCINATIONS
Welcoming guidance, some companies still plan to make shots mandatory
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued long-awaited technical guidance for cruise lines, bringing them one step closer to sailing again in U.S. waters.
While some cruise lines operating in Europe have been requiring all passengers to be vaccinated, the CDC did not go that far. Vaccination will be critical in the safe resumption of cruising, the agency said Friday, and recommended all eligible port personnel, crew and passengers get a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as one becomes available to them.
By making vaccinations a recommendation instead of a requirement, the CDC has avoided conflict with Florida, one of the cruise industry’s biggest bases of operations, which has banned businesses from requiring customers to show proof of vaccinations.
Cruise ships have been docked in the United States for over a year because of the pandemic and can only restart opthe erations by following the CDC’S Framework for Conditional Sailing Order, issued in October to ensure that cruise ships build the onboard infrastructure needed to mitigate the risks of the coronavirus.
The technical instructions will allow cruise lines to prepare their ships for simulation voyages, designed to test health and safety protocols and operational procedures with volunteers before sailing with paying passengers. The new recommendations include increasing from weekly to daily the reporting of COVID-19 cases, implementing routine testing of all crew based on a ship’s COVID-19 status and making contractual arrangements with medical facilities on shore for passengers who may fall ill during a voyage.
Once cruise lines have prepared their ships, they must give 30 days notice to the CDC before starting test cruises and will have to apply for a conditional sailing certificate 60 days before a planned reg
ular voyage.
Norwegian Cruise Line, one of the industry’s biggest operators, submitted a letter to the CDC on Monday outlining its plan to resume cruises from U.S. ports in July, which included mandatory vaccination of all guests and crew. The company said that its vaccination requirement and multilayered health and safety protocols exceeded the agency’s
Conditional Sailing Order requirements.
The Miami company said its precautions go well beyond steps taken by others in the travel and leisure industry that have already reopened, including airlines, hotel, restaurants and sporting events.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd plans to begin U.S. sailings at 60 percent of capacity and raise that to 80 percent in August and 100 percent in September. Norwegian also operates Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven
Seas Cruises. Company shares jumped 6 percent Monday and pulled the shares of rival cruise lines hire as well. Shares Carnival Corp. and Royal Caribbean Group gained nearly 5 percent and more than 3 percent, respectively.
Small ship company Windstar Cruises also announced it still plans to require passengers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The company announced the requirement as it plans to restart cruises in the Caribbean and Mediterranean in June after more than a year out of operation. The company will require crew members to get vaccinated “as soon as vaccinations are available to them.”
Windstar follows Virgin Voyages, which announced earlier this month it will require passengers and crew to be vaccinated when cruises restart. Royal Caribbean Group, which plans to restart cruises in the Caribbean in June, will require crew and passengers over the age of 18 to be vaccinated, and Crystal Cruises, which plans to restart cruises in the Bahamas
in July, will require passengers to have the vaccine.
The CDC said Monday that it “is committed to working with the cruise industry and seaport partners to resume cruising” following a phased approach. “Cruising safely and responsibly during a global pandemic is difficult,” especially with concern over new variants of COVID-19, the agency added.