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Latest CDC-CSO Requirements

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BecciBoo Great Review Rare

BecciBoo

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Posted (edited)
8 minutes ago, Keksie said:

  Until then it will be road trips here in the states to places without so many restrictions.

Our digs in Coz are at Nachi Cocom.  That's about what we do, and there are lots of places with a view of the ocean that we can go, not just stay in our cabin.  We just don't need a lot of entertainment to be happy, so the distancing in dining room and other places will be annoying but not a deal breaker and we'll have 2 other couples with us to make our fun.  Believe me, I hate this crap, but I love cruising more.  So we'll deal with it.  I'm old and decrepid and don't have much time to get my cruising bug satisfied so we'll go whatever.  Road trips, we'll always have time for them.  Lots of places to go and so little time 😏

Edited by BecciBoo
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Biker19

Biker19

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Posted

Cruise lines will be required to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention protocol for COVID-19 on ships through January 15.

 

Captain Aimee Treffiletti, who leads the CDC's maritime unit, told USA TODAY Monday that the agency came to the decision to temporarily extend the agency's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order "in the best interest of public health."

 

"The pandemic isn't over. We've seen what the delta variant can do," Treffiletti said. "Despite, you know, really what have been the best efforts of the cruise industry to provide a safer and healthier environment for crew, passengers and communities, COVID-19 has still been a challenge, particularly with the delta variant."

 

 

The CDC extended the CSO which was released nearly one year ago when the agency's No Sail Order was about to expire. As of Monday, the order applies to foreign-flagged commercial passenger vessels with the capacity to carry 250 people operating or planning to operate for overnight stays for passengers or crew in U.S. waters. 

 

"Since the issuance of the CSO on Oct. 30, 2020, cruise lines, with CDC assistance, have developed and implemented strong health and safety protocols to manage COVID-19 and resumed passenger operations," the CDC said Monday in a release.

What will change with the temporary extension of the CSO?

Treffiletti said Monday that there will be some minor changes to the CSO with the extension. 

 
"Over time, with our online resources, so our technical instructions and our technical instruction web pages, and our COVID-19 operations manuals, we've made adjustments based on the science to our recommendations and requirements," Treffiletti said.

The temporary extension of the CSO Monday incorporated recommendations and requirements listed in the CDC’s Technical Instructions and COVID-19 Operations Manual for cruise ships that have come over time related to protocol, such as masking and testing. Changes also included the order's shift to pertaining only foreign-flagged ships, Dave Daigle, CDC spokesperson, told USA TODAY.

 

"Foreign-flagged ships typically operate on international itineraries far from U.S. shores, outbreaks are more likely to require emergency evacuations while at sea which can burden U.S. Coast Guard and other emergency medical response resources," Daigle said. "Additionally, stopping in foreign ports increases the risk of introducing COVID-19 variants on board."

 

In January, the health agency plans to transition to a voluntary program in which participation will be at the discretion of cruise lines.

 

The health agency will continue to work with the cruise industry going forward, Treffiletti said.

What was the Conditional Sailing Order's initial purpose?

The CSO, announced Oct. 30, 2020, was created by the CDC to lay out a phased approach for the safe resumption of cruising in U.S. waters.

 

Cruise lines were offered two paths for restarting operations: They were allowed to either implement a vaccination requirement (at least 95% of crew and passengers vaccinated) and sail immediately with paying passengers or to conduct simulation sailings with volunteer passengers to test on board COVID-19 protocol and earn CDC approval to sail with paying passengers. 

 

In late June, more than a year after the industry shut down, Celebrity Cruises' Celebrity Edge became the first cruise ship to sail in U.S. waters with paying passengers since March 2020. 

Has COVID protocol required on cruises by CDC order worked?

The protocol in place on ships to mitigate COVID-19 "absolutely has" worked to make cruise ships safer as the world faces a global pandemic, according to Treffiletti.

While there still remains some risk of transmission of COVID on board cruise ships, robust protocol including testing and masking, among other elements, have reduced risk of the pandemic's onboard spread. 

 

"We've never expected that there would be zero risk of transmission," Treffiletti said. "But one thing that's really important is that we haven't seen medical resources overwhelmed on ships – we haven't seen high rates of hospitalizations or deaths that we saw early on in the pandemic related to cruise ships. So, I think we can consider that a success."

 

As of Monday, 47 cruise ships were sailing with paying passengers in U.S. waters following CDC guidance, CDC spokesperson Caitlin Shockey told USA TODAY.

 

The CDC issued a "Level 3: High Level of COVID-19" notice warning on August 20 for cruise travel that remained in place Monday.

 

CDC extends Conditional Sailing Order for cruises through January 15 (usatoday.com)

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Biker19

Biker19

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October 25, 2021 Update

 

CDC extended the Framework for Conditional Sailing Order (CSO) with minor modifications. The CDC Director signed the Temporary Extension & Modification of the CSO on October 25, 2021; it is effective upon expiration of the current CSO on November 1, 2021.

 

The Temporary Extension & Modification of the CSO shall remain in effect until the earliest of

  • The expiration of the Secretary of Health and Human Services’ declaration that COVID-19 constitutes a public health emergency;
  • The CDC Director rescinds or modifies the order based on specific public health or other considerations; or
  • January 15, 2022 at 12:01 am EDT.

After the expiration of the Temporary Extension & Modification of the CSO, CDC intends to transition to a voluntary program, in coordination with cruise ship operators and other stakeholders, to assist the cruise ship industry to detect, mitigate, and control the spread of COVID-19 onboard cruise ships.

 

As of July 23, 2021, the CSO and accompanying measures, such as technical instructions, are nonbinding recommendations for cruise ships arriving in, located within, or departing from a port in Florida. CDC is continuing to operate the CSO as a voluntary program for such ships that choose to follow the CSO measures voluntarily.

 

CDC COVID-19 Orders for Cruise Ships | Quarantine | CDC

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DrDani226

DrDani226

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Posted
2 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

Pages 7 and 8 outline the changes: CDC-CSO-Extension-10-25-21-p.pdf

Any way you can translate lol? Specifically regarding the previous 14-day data gathering/quarantine period for ships returning to US waters (ie Harmony on 10/31)? It seems like there will be a modification to “reduce burden” but doesn’t say what it will be. 

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katemack

katemack

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The last sentence on Page 13 and 1st sentence of page 14 may help.....it says ships that have been sailing in Non US waters that intend to now sail in US waters can choose to conduct modified simulated voyage procedures rather than a full simulated voyage.

Not sure how the procedures differ than an actual voyage but it certainly sounds like it would be less time consuming!

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FishLips23

FishLips23

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9 minutes ago, katemack said:

The last sentence on Page 13 and 1st sentence of page 14 may help.....it says ships that have been sailing in Non US waters that intend to now sail in US waters can choose to conduct modified simulated voyage procedures rather than a full simulated voyage.

Not sure how the procedures differ than an actual voyage but it certainly sounds like it would be less time consuming!

I hope that means harmony is good to sail!! We’re on 11/21 and 11/28 cruises. 🤞🏻 

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RoyalC

RoyalC

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2 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

what does "removed requirement for monitored observation period of passengers prior to embarking" mean?

 

My guess is something that includes (perhaps) not requiring covid testing pre-cruise. Would not mind that for the vaccinated at least.

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Biker19

Biker19

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has made a change for “Highly Vaccinated Voyages” as part of its voluntary COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships. The update means that more unvaccinated guests will be allowed to cruise, such as children.

CDC Lowers Threshold for Unvaccinated Passengers

The CDC has further updated its voluntary program for cruise ships, which all the major cruise lines that operate in the U.S. are following. In the change made on May 5, 2022, CDC now says, “Changed cruise ship vaccination status thresholds from 95% of passengers to 90% of passengers.“

 

Changing the threshold down to 90% allows cruise lines operating under “highly Vaccinated” Voyages to allow more unvaccinated guests to sail (applies to 5 years of age and older).

 

Currently, all the cruise lines opting into the CDC’s program are under “Highly Vacctined” sailings, including Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Line.

 

Previously, the threshold was 95% for unvaccinated guests. The threshold remains the same at 95% when it comes to the crew members.

Isolation Guidance Changed

In addition to lowering the threshold for vaccinated passengers, the CDC also changed its guidance on isolation onboard cruise ships.

 

Isolation rooms onboard are no longer required to have negative pressure, but the locations must still be predesignated. Guests are exempt from being isolated in the cabin within 36 hours of disembarkation.

 

CDC Changes Threshold for 'Highly Vaccinated' Sailings (cruisehive.com)

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molly361

molly361

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16 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has made a change for “Highly Vaccinated Voyages” as part of its voluntary COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships. The update means that more unvaccinated guests will be allowed to cruise, such as children.

CDC Lowers Threshold for Unvaccinated Passengers

The CDC has further updated its voluntary program for cruise ships, which all the major cruise lines that operate in the U.S. are following. In the change made on May 5, 2022, CDC now says, “Changed cruise ship vaccination status thresholds from 95% of passengers to 90% of passengers.“

 

Changing the threshold down to 90% allows cruise lines operating under “highly Vaccinated” Voyages to allow more unvaccinated guests to sail (applies to 5 years of age and older).

 

Currently, all the cruise lines opting into the CDC’s program are under “Highly Vacctined” sailings, including Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Line.

 

Previously, the threshold was 95% for unvaccinated guests. The threshold remains the same at 95% when it comes to the crew members.

Isolation Guidance Changed

In addition to lowering the threshold for vaccinated passengers, the CDC also changed its guidance on isolation onboard cruise ships.

 

Isolation rooms onboard are no longer required to have negative pressure, but the locations must still be predesignated. Guests are exempt from being isolated in the cabin within 36 hours of disembarkation.

 

CDC Changes Threshold for 'Highly Vaccinated' Sailings (cruisehive.com)

Is the pre cruise testing a CDC requirement or advisement?

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Biker19

Biker19

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Posted
Just now, molly361 said:

Is the pre cruise testing a CDC requirement or advisement?

I guess it depends on your definition of "requirement" - the whole CSO is a "recommendation" - have no idea how much wiggle room each of the individual recommendations within it have.

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