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CDC wants cruise ship & port workers vaccinated

April 4th, 2021 | Tags: CDC cruise travel Vaccine COVID-19 port workers
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday, April 2, 2021, recommended that port and ship workers get vaccinated before leisure cruise travel resumes, though the agency stopped short of giving guidance on when it expected to ease restrictions on cruising. Photo: VIC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said its new guidance and phased approach for the cruise industry is to ascertain safety. Photo: Montgomery Community Media
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said its new guidance and phased approach for the cruise industry is to ascertain safety. Photo: Montgomery Community Media
VI CONSORTIUM

FREDERIKSTED, St Croix, USVI- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday, April 2, 2021, recommended that port and ship workers get vaccinated before leisure cruise travel resumes, though the agency stopped short of giving guidance on when it expected to ease restrictions on cruising.

The CDC's Friday guidelines instead provided a path for how port and health authorities should deal with an outbreak once cruise travel is allowed to restart.

The CDC said its new guidance and phased approach for the cruise industry is to ascertain safety. Cruise ships are considered potential hotbeds for the virus because of their enclosed nature; last year, some cruise ships had to spend months on water following outbreaks on the vessels. The CDC also pointed to new variants of the Covid-19 virus as another reason for its approach.

The cruise industry has been shutdown for more than a year, making it one of the hardest hit economically as a result of the Covid-induced shutdowns. Industry officials have criticized the CDC for its slow approach. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at a press conference last week was blunt in what he said was the CDC's callous order which continued to damage Florida's economy — the state has the largest cruise port in the US (Port of Miami).

“I urge the CDC to immediately rescind this baseless no-sail order to allow Floridians in this industry to get back to work,” he said.

“Just today, CDC announced vaccinated Americans could safely travel internationally,” said Capt. John Murray, chief executive officer of Port Canaveral, the world’s second-busiest cruise port (via WSJ). “We’re disappointed that this guidance for the cruise industry appears to be nothing more than an incremental step ... with no definitive or target start date.”

While the CDC has not authorized cruising, other countries, among them the United Kingdom, Singapore and Italy have either approved voyages or have given clear restart dates.

8 Responses to “CDC wants cruise ship & port workers vaccinated ”

  • Rick (04/04/2021, 11:35) Like (4) Dislike (8) Reply
    Not a bad idea
  • Raul (04/04/2021, 11:54) Like (9) Dislike (21) Reply
    This is going to be the new normal. Get vaccinated.
  • Hottie (04/04/2021, 12:15) Like (11) Dislike (12) Reply
    The insurance companies for the cruise ship are also going to insist that any taxi driver and tour operator used by the cruise ship passengers have certificates confirming that they have had the vaccine. No vaccine, no business from the cruise ships. The word in the industry is that the insurance companies also want any staff in restaurants used by the cruise ship passengers to have vaccine certificates but they are worried about how enforceable that will be - it maybe that the passengers will be told that they should only visit restaurants that have a sign confirming that all the staff have been vaccinated.
    • @Hottie. 0ne and 0ne is 2. Simple (04/04/2021, 16:46) Like (3) Dislike (3) Reply
      Exactly. and thats the way it should be...Either get inline or get left behind
  • bvi (04/04/2021, 16:02) Like (5) Dislike (6) Reply
    why not post the sign "666" and get the whole thing over with..instead of hiding behind a vaccine.
  • THEY (04/04/2021, 16:03) Like (3) Dislike (3) Reply
    Vaccinated already why they scared?
    Stupes ...
    This is just hilarious.
  • Agree. Makes Sense (04/04/2021, 16:43) Like (3) Dislike (2) Reply
    Makes a lot of sense... Government just need to get their workers vaccinated, , Simple,,,Just make a work place safety policy, that requires workers to be vaccinated as to keep the work place safe...Every employer should adopt that policy...Its time to move the country forward...
  • Quarantine (04/04/2021, 17:53) Like (2) Dislike (2) Reply
    The cruise ship industry seems to ignore that most cruise ports outside the USA require a quarantine period for all arriving passengers and crew. Maybe these cruise ships should just commence gambling cruises to nowhere for the next few years until the quarantine periods are non-existent in the various cruise ports.


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