WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday released new guidelines for the cruise industry, including the need to vaccinate COVID-19, a necessary step to resume travel. passengers.
The new technical instructions, the first update since October, include increasing the frequency of weekly to daily reporting of COVID-19 cases and illnesses and implementing routine testing of the entire crew based on COVID-19 status. ‘a ship and establish a plan and timetable for the vaccination of crew and port personnel.
“Vaccination efforts against COVID-19 will be critical to the safe resumption of passenger operations,” the CDC said.
CDC said the next phase of the CDC’s conditional sailing order will include simulated voyages to allow crew and port personnel to practice new COVID-19 operating procedures with volunteers before sailing with passengers.
“CDC is committed to working with the cruise industry and seaport partners to resume the cruise when it is safe to do so, following the phased approach described” in the October conditional sailing order, “he said. the agency.
He did not specify a date for the resumption of cruise operations from U.S. ports despite industry calls to plan a gradual resumption in early July. The CDC said it will issue additional guidelines before allowing cruises to resume.
The international association Cruise Lines, which represents Carnival Corp, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean Cruises, among others, called on the CDC to issue new guidelines, saying in a March 24 statement that “the lack of action by The CDC has effectively banned all navigation on the world’s largest cruise market. He did not comment immediately on Friday.
The group had said the pre-conditional sailing order issued in October was “obsolete” and “does not reflect the industry’s proven advances and success in other parts of the world, nor the advent of vaccines and unfair treatment. “Cruise lines should be treated in the same way as other sectors of travel, tourism, hospitality and entertainment.”