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Mandatory Vaccination from NCL for Crew


BoozinCroozin
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You knew this was coming and it is a sign that they have a game plan in place when they can start to sail again. It is the first sign of progress to getting to the point of sailing again. It will require more pharmaceutical manufacturing and hopefully J&J vaccine to be effective.

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/norwegian-cruise-line-require-crew-151500231.html

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This is really interesting in at least two areas

 

1) Why is Saga not requiring the crew to be vaccinated?  My suspicion is that they are more worried about liability claims from passengers than the crew.

 

2) Where will they get the vaccine?  It seems that vaccines are in short supply and governments are controlling most of the distribution.  Will the ships be using vaccines that aren't approved in the areas where they are sailing?   

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7 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Of note, it states NCL will be "asking" crew to get the vaccine, so they are not willing to spend the money to vaccinate crew, but rely on crew being able to get the vaccine in their home countries.

 

good luck with that NCL!  Again, it seems more about protecting the company than the crew.

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8 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

 

good luck with that NCL!  Again, it seems more about protecting the company than the crew.

 

While it may also be a risk management strategy, I suspect that the primary reason is in response to an expectation that some/many countries may require proof of vaccination prior to entry. If all crew aren't vaccinated the vessel doesn't clear "Pratique" so can't enter the port.

 

In the marine industry, shipping companies requiring crew members to be vaccinated is nothing new. When I was deep sea, prior to signing-on a ship, I had to have all vaccinations current and with expiry not within the 4 month contract. This was on my time and expense. The shipping company only paid and made arrangements if you were still onboard when one expired.

 

NCL might be the first to publish this requirement, but they won't be the only cruise line.

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17 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

 

good luck with that NCL!  Again, it seems more about protecting the company than the crew.

Are you speaking for all those other countries? Pfizer, Moderna, etc, are not just giving doses to the US. In fact, Johnson and Johnson has committed to 100 million doses to the US in 2021, but is projecting 1 billion doses total production, worldwide. Pfizer and Moderna have similar numbers, as does AstraZenica. Plus other countries are also producing vaccines, including Russia, China and a couple other European countries.

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13 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Are you speaking for all those other countries? Pfizer, Moderna, etc, are not just giving doses to the US. In fact, Johnson and Johnson has committed to 100 million doses to the US in 2021, but is projecting 1 billion doses total production, worldwide. Pfizer and Moderna have similar numbers, as does AstraZenica. Plus other countries are also producing vaccines, including Russia, China and a couple other European countries.

But doses in the bottles is not the same thing as needles in the arm. And while the wealthier countries have existing contracts for sufficient doses for their citizens, not all countries are able to afford that. Nor do they have the infrastructure for administering them,  even if they had them. Even first world countries are experiencing problems with their roll outs - some more than others. So expecting crew members living in 3rd world countries to get vaccinated at home in rapid fashion seems to me to be a pipe dream.

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21 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Are you speaking for all those other countries? ..., but is projecting 1 billion doses total production, worldwide... Plus other countries are also producing vaccines, including Russia, China and a couple other European countries.

 

Remember that the population of the world is about 8 billion.  It will take time especially when the logistics are factored in.  The good news for the lines is that perhaps money rather than health policy will determine who receives the vaccine in some of the countries were crew members live.

 

It will be curious if these other vaccines will be considered valid vaccinations?  Are they truly effective?  Will they be accepted for visitors entering other countries?   I am not passing judgement on Chinese or Russian vaccines, but again it sounds like more complications are coming.

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29 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

I suspect that the primary reason is in response to an expectation that some/many countries may require proof of vaccination prior to entry.

 

Totally agree with this point!  This also will complicate the start up of cruising in certain areas.

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1 hour ago, SelectSys said:

 

Totally agree with this point!  This also will complicate the start up of cruising in certain areas.

 

You bet. When crew vaccinations start to restrict a return to operations and a number of countries are requiring everyone aboard be vaccinated, you will see the cruise lines providing crew with the vaccine, if the crewing agencies can source it.

 

It is going to be an interesting next 6 to 8 months, so see how this plays out.

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Something odd about the article. It mentions Norwegian and Regent Seven Seas but not Oceania.  Some reporters don't seem to understand the difference between Norwegian, meaning the cruise line NCL, and Norwegian Cruise Lines Holdings, NCLH, the parent  company of NCL, Oceania and Regent Seven Seas. 

 

Who actually released this information and which NCLH cruise line(s) does it actually apply to?

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10 hours ago, mom says said:

But doses in the bottles is not the same thing as needles in the arm. And while the wealthier countries have existing contracts for sufficient doses for their citizens, not all countries are able to afford that. Nor do they have the infrastructure for administering them,  even if they had them. Even first world countries are experiencing problems with their roll outs - some more than others. So expecting crew members living in 3rd world countries to get vaccinated at home in rapid fashion seems to me to be a pipe dream.

More importantly, the United States does not have sufficient vaccine on order for their citizens. Not knowing which manufacturer would have an approved vaccine, the US split their orders of 100M doses each. Only two have made it across the finish line. And reorders of Pfizer and Moderna are now back ordered behind other countries. Cuomo makes no secret that he is competing against the Feds to purchase his own vaccine for NY. 
 

AstraZeneca flat out lied to the FDA about their trail, then produced trial data which which was illogical. Unless Biden orders the FDA to accept the dodgy trial data, it will be awhile before it is approved in the US. 

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15 hours ago, SelectSys said:

This is really interesting in at least two areas

 

1) Why is Saga not requiring the crew to be vaccinated?  My suspicion is that they are more worried about liability claims from passengers than the crew.

 

2) Where will they get the vaccine?  It seems that vaccines are in short supply and governments are controlling most of the distribution.  Will the ships be using vaccines that aren't approved in the areas where they are sailing?   

Saga is a UK based operation. There has been some talk on different forums here that the larger U.S based or sailing operations like Carnival might be able to get corporate supplies of vaccine from somewhere for USA operations. In UK supplies of vaccine on the corporate level or on the from the profit/private sector will be near impossible to obtain as the UK NHS is handling the entire rollout. So it could be some time for staff to get vaccinated no matter what country they are from. Perhaps it is the intention of Saga to register their staff with UK doctors if they can and get them vaccinated on NHS in UK though I am not sure they could do that.

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15 hours ago, SelectSys said:

This is really interesting in at least two areas

 

1) Why is Saga not requiring the crew to be vaccinated?  My suspicion is that they are more worried about liability claims from passengers than the crew.

 

2) Where will they get the vaccine?  It seems that vaccines are in short supply and governments are controlling most of the distribution.  Will the ships be using vaccines that aren't approved in the areas where they are sailing?   

Saga are also being picky about the vaccine that passengers can have. It HAS to have been approved by UK regulatory body. No exceptions.

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5 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Cuomo makes no secret that he is competing against the Feds to purchase his own vaccine for NY.

He makes no secret that he WANTS to, but Pfizer told him they won't sell to him directly unless they get approval from the Federal Government - 

https://dailyvoice.com/new-york/nassau/business/covid-19-pfizer-denies-cuomos-request-for-state-to-buy-vaccine-directly/801645/

 

You'll also note in the article that Moderna's agreement as part of joining Operation Warp Speed is that they won't sell direct to any entity other than the Federal Government.

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Realizing production and supply will increase with time...we hope...just read today that with the quantity of vaccine the state of Tennessee has received or is scheduled to be receiving, it will take 3 years and 5 months to get all the state's population vaccinated.  Again, realizing this should start to change hopefully soon, it still indicates it is going to be a slow process, slower than previously implied, and the virus is going to be in control still into the near future.  

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40 minutes ago, roger001 said:

just read today that with the quantity of vaccine the state of Tennessee has received or is scheduled to be receiving, it will take 3 years and 5 months to get all the state's population vaccinated

At the current pace, New York will need 17 weeks to vaccinate all of the currently-eligible people.  No word on how long for the rest of the population.

 

It's not like the vaccine stock is intentionally low, I'm sure it's being produced as quickly as possible.

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4 hours ago, ace2542 said:

Carnival might be able to get corporate supplies of vaccine from somewhere for USA operations

I think the cruise lines will be in for a tough time obtaining vaccines for crews.  Their best bets would be in India and China.  China and India are especially eager to pursue "vaccine diplomacy" to strengthen their industries.  However, these vaccines might not be universally recognized for some time.

 

4 hours ago, ace2542 said:

Saga are also being picky about the vaccine that passengers can have. It HAS to have been approved by UK regulatory body. No exceptions.

 

Makes sense to me.  I have a feeling this may also effect tourism if vaccination become a requirement for entering certain countries.

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I believe I also read that NY is trying to negotiate outside the US govt. supply for additional vaccine.  Not satisfied with the govt. delivery.  And  other suppliers maybe coming on line soon with more vaccines, Johnson & Johnson.  But....still not going to happen quickly.  I get my second in a week.  Damn excited about that!   I just flat lucked out with that though.  A friend notified me of a signup list back before it was widely advertised.  We are still in the first phase plus the 75 age group.  And our county signup list now says no more appointments available through Feb.  I flat lucked out.  

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AstraZeneca committed to supply vaccine to poorer countries at cost in 2021, they can supply the recipe anywhere in the world for countries to make their own vaccine under licence, AstraZeneca has been approved in India & "The Serum Institute of India" has already made millions of doses under licence.

The beauty of this vaccine is it costs just $3-4 a shot and can be stored in a regular fridge which means it's cheap as chips and very easy to distribute.

AstraZeneca aim to produce 3 billion shots worldwide in 2021, while Pfizer & Moderna are aiming for 1.3 billion and 1 billion respectively. This is not taking into account the other vaccine manufacturers or the fact both Russia and China have their own vaccines and are well on their way vaccinating their populations (China accounts for 1.4 billion of the worlds 7.7 billion population).

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