Posted on 08/31/2021 7:55:26 PM PDT by Capt. Tom
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has increased the COVID threat level to level 4, signifying a high risk of COVID-19, for two additional cruise destinations on August 30. Puerto Rico and St. Lucia have both been added to the list.
The list of cruise destinations that have been given a Level 4: Very High Level of COVID-19 designation is steadily growing. Besides Puerto Rico and St. Lucia, the list includes the Bahamas, St. Maarten, Aruba, Dominica, Curacao, St. Barts, Martinique, the US Virgin Islands, and the British Virgin Islands.
Puerto Rico and St. Lucia at Level 4 The cruise destinations of Puerto Rico and St. Lucia have now been added to the list and fall into the “Covid-19 Very High” Level 4 category have had more than 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the past 28 days, according to criteria the CDC outlines on its website.
Puerto Rico CDC Travel Notice The Level 3 category applies to destinations with 100 and 500 cases per 100,000 residents in the past 28 days. The list does not specify or count the percentage of vaccinated individuals or hospitalizations.
Currently, for the two cruise destinations, the CDC says that travelers should get fully vaccinated before traveling.
For St. Lucia, there is slightly more information with the CDC advising that there is more risk of catching COVID due to the spreading varients. For the Caribbean island, it’s also advised to follow local protocols including wearing a mask and staying six feet apart.
St. Lucia CDC Travel Notice
The CDC’s level list should be seen as advice on whether each country can be considered safe to go to. Another critical factor is whether a country has the health and medical care capabilities that the US has.
The CDC said in a statement to the Washington Post: “Travel increases your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19. You may feel well and not have any symptoms, but you can still spread COVID-19 to others. Staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19. Travelers need to be aware that they can spread disease at their destination among people who may not have the same access to vaccinations and quality medical care,”
As it stands, the CDC’s guidance is just that; however, if the CDC’s guidance is coupled with the State Department, which it usually is, travelers could expect to see some other issues.
These include, for example, travel insurance which would not cover certain events. Therefore, those going on a cruise should always check their insurance coverage with their provider if traveling to or calling at a cruise port designated as level four. The state department also warns there could be a lack of consular services in these destinations:
“In our travel information, we warn people not to visit certain high-risk countries and areas both because of local conditions and because we are limited in our ability to provide consular services in those places.”
Are Cruises Affected By The Travel Notice?
So far, the cruise lines have not been affected by the travel notice that the CDC gives out. So far, the cruise industry has mostly had to deal with guidelines that have been issued by government agencies outside the United States. For example, the Bahamas and the US Virgin Islands include a fully vaccinated mandate to cruises calling in the Islands.
Carnival Cruise Line issued a statement upon Mardi Gras‘ first call to Puerto Rico that the island would not allow unvaccinated guests off the vessel.
Are cruises affected now? No, not really. Calls for cruise ships like Mardi Gras, Vision of the Seas, and MSC Meraviglia to San Juan, Puerto Rico, should be unaffected by the notice. Neither should calls to St. Lucia be affected for Celebrity Equinox, Seabourn Odyssey, Vision of the Seas, or Viking Orion. Of course, the cruise lines could always decide to change calls if they do feel it is necessary.
There are many more examples in which ports of call have mandates in place that often go much further than what the CDC has as protocols. And in many cases, these are countries that have received a level four designation from the agency.
For now, travelers should be aware of the notices the CDC and the State Department publish. Travel anywhere in the world does carry risk; for now, it remains the individual’s decision whether that risk is worth taking.
If the cruise lines are not affected negatively by the new CDC rules, that to me is a sign the restrictions onboard are to rigid, and to me a lot of experienced cruises are going to wait until things become more normal.
That means that cruise line economic recovery is going to be slower than the Lines imply. -Tom
Who is the CDC to tell anybody to do anything?
The CDC ass kissing Cruise lines have burdened themselves with all the CDC "Suggestions" and have put additional burdens on themselves, to please the CDC. -Tom
CDC announces they will be taking cruises to each destination at the government’s expense to personally verify if these levels of COVID infection are true...
Puerto Rico is a U.S. Territory, yet the CDC treats it as a foreign destination. The same level of crap is true for the rest of the U.S., yet there are no CDC travel warnings for, say, Florida. The CDC hates Puerto Ricans.
“This is your captain speaking. We will be casting off for our four-hour cruise which will include a complete pair of laps of the harbor -— one in a clockwise direction the other in a counter-clockwise direction.
We appreciate your patronage.”
CDC Director To Restart Gun Research Amid Spate Of Mass Shootings
For the first time in decades, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will restart research into the gun violence epidemic across the U.S. CDC researchers will be on a mission to collect enough data to enable the agency to create solutions to prevent gun-related deaths, accidental gun deaths, and/or suicides.
CDC director Rochelle Walensky spoke with CNN over the weekend and revealed her new plan to research guns and gun-related violence.
“Every day, we turn on the news, and there are more young people dying,” Walensky said. “I swore to the president and to this country that I would protect your health. This is clearly one of those moments, one of those issues, that’s harming America’s health.”
The CDC has remained silent for decades about guns, tackling other epidemics as tens of thousands of people die from firearm-related injuries every year.
Breaking down GVA’s numbers, the U.S. is averaging nearly two mass shootings per day.
Walensky said, “something has to be done about this,” adding that Americans are sick and tired of turning on the nightly news and hearing about mass shooting stories.
My job is to understand and evaluate the problem. To understand the scope of the problem. To understand why this happens and what are the things that can make it better,” she said
Walensky hopes that gun owners don’t associate the CDC’s upcoming research with “gun control.”
She continued: “I’m not here about gun control. I’m here about preventing gun violence and gun death.”
This brings us to her boss, President Biden, whose administration members are on a mission to limit or ban guns.
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/cdc-director-restart-gun-research-amid-spate-mass-shootings
” a lot of experienced cruises are going to wait until things become more normal.”
We are in that category. Except delete the word, “more”. We will wait until completely normal.
The CDC has more fables than Hans Christian Anderson, and the cruise lines are the town folk in “The Emperor’s New Clothes”.
The CDC is EVIL and OUT OF CONTROL!!
Commonwealth, not territory.
We are in that category. Except delete the word, “more”. We will wait until completely normal.
I don't believe it will get back to "completely normal so the Cruise lines will have to rely on a new younger generation of cruisers.
You can see that in the design of the new cruise ship. For example rock climbing walls, different types of slides, race tracks, bumper cars etc.
That is not for older cruisers; it is to attract younger passengers and their children.
There will be lines that will cater to older cruisers, but things will not go back to normal on many big cruise lines in my opinion.
And nobody knows how a Muslim attack on a cruise line will factor in; or a dust up between countries- very real possibilities now.
In the mean time lets get on with our lives. -Tom
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.