will the crew have to get the vaccine before we cruise

[beerman2]

2 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

Believe me money isn't talking in terms of the vaccine. My wife has been working from home. All day she fields calls from name droppers and hospital donors wanting an appointment for the vaccine. They have to wait in line like the rest of us and register on the state website. Patients are being vaccinated at the hospital in priority order. As a matter of fact the State has been shipping more vaccines to the state facilities and has been cutting down sending them to hospitals.

DW is in a situation with her dad getting his 2nd dose. They can’t give her a time/date. The first was 3 weeks ago.

We can’t seem to get things  in order here in Ohio. 
You would think there should have been an exact time frame in place, instead of saying we will call/text you when ready.

[Iamcruzin]

5 minutes ago, beerman2 said:

DW is in a situation with her dad getting his 2nd dose. They can’t give her a time/date. The first was 3 weeks ago.

We can’t seem to get things  in order here in Ohio. 
You would think there should have been an exact time frame in place, instead of saying we will call/text you when ready.

Here they reserve the second dose and give you an appointment before you leave.

[beerman2]

12 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

Here they reserve the second dose and give you an appointment before you leave.

That's the inconsistency here , the Health Dept. does that, the Drug Store didn't. 

[Iamcruzin]

15 minutes ago, beerman2 said:

That's the inconsistency here , the Health Dept. does that, the Drug Store didn't. 

We haven't seen them in the drug stores yet.

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, Iamcruzin said:

"We are exploring all options regarding vaccinations for guests and crew and it is our intention that all crew members be vaccinated before boarding our vessels to begin their duties, subject to availability of the vaccine," 

 

And there lies the disclaimer for both crew and children.

 

That about sums it up. "We really wish and hope people would get vaccinated, but we know we can't require it"

 

What's the vaccine situation in non-western countries? Is it being given away free there, too?

[sugcarol]

In Texas, they wont give first dose unless they have 2nd dose available. The rollout is going great here in North Texas. We can go anywhere in the state to get vaccine. It is up to the  Governors of each state how they want the vaccine to be delivered to the providers. So many states were not ready even though President Trump told them to be ready by 11/3/20 and they werent. They started sending the doses and some states did not have a plan in place and the shipments sat too long and had to be discarded. There were instances where the providers got the vaccines but refused to use them and then had to be discarded. The government is paying the providers to inject. Medicare payments to the providers is 28.39 per injection and government is paying 50.00 for each injection for all others. The vaccine of course is free to the providers.That was part of the Operation Warp Speed prior to the new administration, and still in place as far as we know.

Edited February 11, 2021 by sugcarol
Spelling

[LuCruise]

17 hours ago, Billy Baltic said:

I think this will be one of things which delays cruising for a long time. Wealthy countries are behind schedule on their vaccination plans already. Countries with less developed health systems are not going to prioritise vaccinating young, healthy people so they leave the country to work. Will RC try to buy vaccines privately for them? Is it even possible?

I certainly hope it's a requirement....and agree with the above comment.

I think anywhere, the healthy and younger group are the last to get vaccinated.

[lizzius]

3 minutes ago, LuCruise said:

I certainly hope it's a requirement....and agree with the above comment.

I think anywhere, the healthy and younger group are the last to get vaccinated.

I think so too, but there are more vaccines on the way than the ones that are available in the US right now.

[sandebeach]

The CDC has just stated that if you are fully vaccinated, and within thee months of your last shot, you do not need to quarantine if exposed to someone with COVID. So if everyone on a cruise is vaccinated, including all crew and all passengers, this would have a positive impact on concerns about the need to quarantine the entire ship if someone has a positive Covid test during the cruise. 

[Ourusualbeach]

1 hour ago, smokeybandit said:

 

That about sums it up. "We really wish and hope people would get vaccinated, but we know we can't require it"

 

What's the vaccine situation in non-western countries? Is it being given away free there, too?

Royal can absolutely require the vaccine for crew.

 

the subject to availability would mean that for crew boarding in the next XX number of months may not be able to get it and would board under the prior conditions.  They are boarding replacement crew now that they need that could not possibly get the vaccine.  At some point it will become mandatory.  
 

In all likelihood at some point this year Royal will be able to purchase their own supply of the vaccine and be able to vaccinate any crew that could not get it in their home country. 

[Brucemcdou]

18 hours ago, Billy Baltic said:

I think this will be one of things which delays cruising for a long time. Wealthy countries are behind schedule on their vaccination plans already. Countries with less developed health systems are not going to prioritise vaccinating young, healthy people so they leave the country to work. Will RC try to buy vaccines privately for them? Is it even possible?

I don't imagine we're talking about crew members getting vaccinated through their local national health care system but rather RC arranging for vaccinations.  And yes, private firms can buy vaccines just like health care systems - my firm has been negotiating for this but is holding off due to the negative optics of a US firm with a relatively young healthy workforce appearing to "jump the line" ahead of poor countries, etc. 

 

Not all crew are from less developed countries either - plenty are from Canada, Australia, Germany, Switzerland and lots of places with better-organized health care systems than the US!

 

And lastly, "less developed countries" might very well chose to prioritize vaccinating young workers who leave the country to work because they send remittances to family back home - it's a huge source of support for the economies in those countries and the governments know it.  

[Mary229]

1 minute ago, Brucemcdou said:

I don't imagine we're talking about crew members getting vaccinated through their local national health care system but rather RC arranging for vaccinations.  And yes, private firms can buy vaccines just like health care systems - my firm has been negotiating for this but is holding off due to the negative optics of a US firm with a relatively young healthy workforce appearing to "jump the line" ahead of poor countries, etc. 

 

Not all crew are from less developed countries either - plenty are from Canada, Australia, Germany, Switzerland and lots of places with better-organized health care systems than the US!

 

And lastly, "less developed countries" might very well chose to prioritize vaccinating young workers who leave the country to work because they send remittances to family back home - it's a huge source of support for the economies in those countries and the governments know it.  

I am sure there are many countries who manufacture pharmaceuticals very willing to sell vaccine to private corporations.   As I recall there is no patent on these vaccines, they were all freely shared technologies.

Edited February 11, 2021 by Mary229

[orville99]

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

I am sure there are many countries who manufacture pharmaceuticals very willing to sell vaccine to private corporations.   As I recall there is no patent on these vaccines, they were all freely shared technologies.

The ones currently with EUA Pfizer, Moderna, AZ) are in fact patented vaccines, and J&J's vaccine is also patented, just not quite approved yet. There is a movement from multiple countries to have the W.H.O require licensing of all of the vaccines to alternative pharmaceutical manufacturers i.e. Cipla (India) which is seeking a license to manufacture 600 Million doses of the J&J vaccine, and Teva (Israel) which is also in discussions to produce the vaccines. 

 

As for which vaccine gets into the arms of crew, it is more likely that the W.H.O will ultimately be the authorizing agency, not the CDC or EMA. In countries where a significant percentage of an economy is generated by crew (or people who leave to find work in other countries) sending part of their salary back home to support their family, the priorities may very well be different than in the U.S., Canada, or Europe.

[Mary229]

11 minutes ago, orville99 said:

The ones currently with EUA Pfizer, Moderna, AZ) are in fact patented vaccines, and J&J's vaccine is also patented, just not quite approved yet. There is a movement from multiple countries to have the W.H.O require licensing of all of the vaccines to alternative pharmaceutical manufacturers i.e. Cipla (India) which is seeking a license to manufacture 600 Million doses of the J&J vaccine, and Teva (Israel) which is also in discussions to produce the vaccines. 

 

As for which vaccine gets into the arms of crew, it is more likely that the W.H.O will ultimately be the authorizing agency, not the CDC or EMA. In countries where a significant percentage of an economy is generated by crew (or people who leave to find work in other countries) sending part of their salary back home to support their family, the priorities may very well be different than in the U.S., Canada, or Europe.

That still doesn't account for the Chinese and Russian vaccine.  We don't have reliable data now but those could be available.  I recall reading Brazil was using the Chinese vaccine

Edited February 11, 2021 by Mary229

[orville99]

37 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

That still doesn't account for the Chinese and Russian vaccine.  We don't have reliable data now but those could be available.  I recall reading Brazil was using the Chinese vaccine

I believe several countries are using either one or both of those vaccines. As you pointed out, neither has been through the rigorous review process that the FDA or EMA uses. I’m not sure what the W.H.O.’s position is on either vaccine.

[Mary229]

11 minutes ago, orville99 said:

I believe several countries are using either one or both of those vaccines. As you pointed out, neither has been through the rigorous review process that the FDA or EMA uses. I’m not sure what the W.H.O.’s position is on either vaccine.

 A quick web search says Mexico, Pakistan, UAE, Bahrain, Brazil, Lebanon  have approved and the list goes on.  Others are in the wings including India.  This is a much wider net than the western vaccines have.  We are much too focused on the FDA and EMA.   and........Mexico is now trying to lure the cruise lines away from Florida.  

[Mapleleafforever]

3 hours ago, sandebeach said:

The CDC has just stated that if you are fully vaccinated, and within thee months of your last shot, you do not need to quarantine if exposed to someone with COVID. So if everyone on a cruise is vaccinated, including all crew and all passengers, this would have a positive impact on concerns about the need to quarantine the entire ship if someone has a positive Covid test during the cruise. 

CDC also said this in the same breath.....

 

"At this time, vaccinated persons should continue to follow current guidance to protect themselves and others, including wearing a mask, staying at least 6 feet away from others, avoiding crowds, avoiding poorly ventilated spaces, covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands often, following CDC travel guidance, and following any applicable workplace or school guidance, including guidance related to personal protective equipment use or SARS-CoV-2 testing."

[Mapleleafforever]

3 hours ago, Brucemcdou said:

I don't imagine we're talking about crew members getting vaccinated through their local national health care system but rather RC arranging for vaccinations.  And yes, private firms can buy vaccines just like health care systems - my firm has been negotiating for this but is holding off due to the negative optics of a US firm with a relatively young healthy workforce appearing to "jump the line" ahead of poor countries, etc. 

 

Not all crew are from less developed countries either - plenty are from Canada, Australia, Germany, Switzerland and lots of places with better-organized health care systems than the US!

 

And lastly, "less developed countries" might very well chose to prioritize vaccinating young workers who leave the country to work because they send remittances to family back home - it's a huge source of support for the economies in those countries and the governments know it.  

Might not want to use my Country as an example.....our vaccine supply has is being held up by Euro politics and has hardly administered any doses so far and none are coming on the immediate horizon. 

 

Our numbers are trending down currently though the same as the US. 

[Mapleleafforever]

53 minutes ago, orville99 said:

I believe several countries are using either one or both of those vaccines. As you pointed out, neither has been through the rigorous review process that the FDA or EMA uses. I’m not sure what the W.H.O.’s position is on either vaccine.

Any vaccine will be accepted, you'll see. 

[DISFANS3]

Hope so??

[Mary229]

37 minutes ago, Mapleleafforever said:

Any vaccine will be accepted, you'll see. 

Absolutely or it would be a free for all.  Mexico is a big destination and if they would only accept the Sputnik vaccine there would be no Americans, Canadians, Australians or British sailing there.  It is terribly centric to think only a handful of vaccines created in the west are acceptable.

[Mapleleafforever]

4 hours ago, sandebeach said:

The CDC has just stated that if you are fully vaccinated, and within thee months of your last shot, you do not need to quarantine if exposed to someone with COVID. So if everyone on a cruise is vaccinated, including all crew and all passengers, this would have a positive impact on concerns about the need to quarantine the entire ship if someone has a positive Covid test during the cruise. 

"Within 3 months". 

[boscobeans]

22 hours ago, molly361 said:

Thinking about that it sure isn't going to be easy for any line to get that done and be sailing in May, probably not even July

While not providing a timeline for when foodservice workers could get the coronavirus vaccinations, for which two separate companies have received early use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices over the weekend recommended they be included in round 1c of vaccine distribution.

 

Food service employees on a ship could easily include almost everyone on the ship.  

 

As 1-C essential then it would up to the cruise lines to apply for the vaccines, showing they had the staff and ability to perform the immunizations.

[boscobeans]

6 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

We haven't seen them in the drug stores yet.

CVS began setting up scheduled appointments for Covid-19 vaccinations this morning

 

They will begin immunizing BY APPOINTMENT ONLY this Saturday.

[orville99]

2 hours ago, Mapleleafforever said:

Any vaccine will be accepted, you'll see. 

Absolutely. I know the vaccine snobs will disagree, but in the end every vaccine that passes muster (regardless of which agency approves it) will be used.