Health advisor to cruise lines describes how a Covid ‘safe bubble’ can be created on ships

[Red-Sol]

File this under no one really knows yet what will happen.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/09/dr-scott-gottlieb-how-covid-safe-bubble-can-be-created-on-cruises.html

Edited April 9, 2021 by Red-Sol

[BirdTravels]

Dr Gottlieb makes a lot of definitive statements on what cruise lines will, maybe, someday do is based on pure speculation. Statements on how Biden has done wonderful with vaccines is not really true, we are still vaccinating with medication purchased by Trump. And the one direct action by Biden to get random companies to manufacture J&J vaccines resulted in 15 million doses failing quality check...

how many more got by the QC and were administered. 

[njhorseman]

Let's remember that Dr. Gottlieb was employed by NCL and Royal Caribbean to co-chair the Healthy Sail Panel, and I think it's safe to assume he was well compensated for doing so. 

 

Would anyone expect him to now say that the cruise lines couldn't sail safely ?

[njhorseman]

2 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

And the one direct action by Biden to get random companies to manufacture J&J vaccines resulted in 15 million doses failing quality check...

how many more got by the QC and were administered.

Emergent BioSolutions is not a "random company" picked by Biden and in fact is a longtime government contractor that has been supplying the federal stockpile with anthrax vaccine . Not a single dose of its COVID vaccines have been administered (see bolded sentence below):

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/us/covid-vaccines-emergent-biosolutions.html

"WASHINGTON — More than eight years ago, the federal government invested in an insurance policy against vaccine shortages during a pandemic. It paid Emergent BioSolutions, a Maryland biotech firm known for producing anthrax vaccines, to have a factory in Baltimore always at the ready.

When the coronavirus pandemic arrived, the factory became the main U.S. location for manufacturing Covid-19 vaccines developed by Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca, churning out about 150 million doses as of last week.

But so far not a single dose has been usable because regulators have not yet certified the factory to allow the vaccines to be distributed to the public."

Edited April 9, 2021 by njhorseman

[fwdpost]

"During our first full month of operations, July and August 2021, guests will be required to purchase a Norwegian Cruise Line shore excursion. This policy will be continually evaluated with our Sail Safe expert council and we will modify requirements accordingly." - NCL

 

Can't go out on your own. Must pay to get off the ship for a tour you don't want. This will increase prices huge and make NCL tons of kickback money from tour operators.

Edited April 9, 2021 by fwdpost
clarifying

[DCGuy64]

1 minute ago, fwdpost said:

Can't go out on your own. Must pay to get off the ship for a tour you don't want. This will increase prices huge and make NCL tons of kickback money from tour operators.

People said the same thing last year when MSC instituted the same policy. Apparently, excursion prices didn't change and the cruise line gave people free ones. Let's wait and see what NCL offers before assuming the worst.

[fwdpost]

5 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

People said the same thing last year when MSC instituted the same policy. Apparently, excursion prices didn't change and the cruise line gave people free ones. Let's wait and see what NCL offers before assuming the worst.

It's not just the price, it's how you decide what to do. Most fun is to go off on your own to small museums, restaurants, shops, sightseeing, and getting a drink in a local bar and talking to folks. Instead, we will be subjected to standing in line for 40 minutes, while some dolt assembles a long line of sheep, heading for a tour bus, listening to ane "expert" explain where you are while shooting by at 20 miles an hour and then landing in a "preferred" shopping center.

Edited April 9, 2021 by fwdpost
clarity

[DCGuy64]

5 minutes ago, fwdpost said:

It's not just the price, it's how you decide what to do. Most fun is to go off on your own to small museums, restaurants, shops, sightseeing, and getting a drink in a local bar and talking to folks. Instead, we will be subjected to standing in line for 40 minutes while some dolt assembles a long line of sheep, heading for a tour bus, listening to some "expert" explain where you are while shooting by and 20 miles an hour and then landing in a "preferred" shopping center.

Well when you come up with the perfect solution that won't endanger anyone from contracting Coronavirus on an excursion, feel free to write to the cruise line. In the meantime, I'm happy to take whatever I can get after more than a year with no cruising. I get what you're saying, but allowing people to "go it alone" right now is a recipe for disaster and it's just the present reality. Hopefully to be eased later on. It won't be a deal breaker for us. PS sorry your cruise-sponsored excursions have been boring. I guess we've been lucky. Most of the time, even the independent excursions we've done were by the same tour operators as the sponsored ones, with a nominal upcharge if booked by the ship. (but often offset by promos or OBC)

Edited April 9, 2021 by DCGuy64

[Summerstravel]

8 minutes ago, fwdpost said:

"During our first full month of operations, July and August 2021, guests will be required to purchase a Norwegian Cruise Line shore excursion. This policy will be continually evaluated with our Sail Safe expert council and we will modify requirements accordingly." - NCL

 

Can't go out on your own. Must pay to get off the ship for a tour you don't want. This will increase prices huge and make NCL tons of kickback money from tour operators.

Any idea about Harvest Caye will you have to purchase an excursion to leave the ship? I was just wondering since the island is owned by Norwegian and it is a private cruise port. 

[Navis]

3 minutes ago, Summerstravel said:

Any idea about Harvest Caye will you have to purchase an excursion to leave the ship? I was just wondering since the island is owned by Norwegian and it is a private cruise port. 

I’m pretty sure I read somewhere that the private islands will be just like being on the ship. No need to have a excursion to go ashore, but all COVID protocols will still apply just like on the ship (social distancing, masking when necessary, etc.)

 

I think there was even one line (not NCL) that was thinking about “breaking up to the day” on their island. 1/2 the ship gets the morning, other 1/2 gets the afternoon. Then on the return trip when they stop again you reverse your time block.

[chengkp75]

What exactly was his "description" of how a "safe bubble" could be made?  Social distancing on elevators?  Details?  The devil is always in the details.

[Navis]

12 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

What exactly was his "description" of how a "safe bubble" could be made?  Social distancing on elevators?  Details?  The devil is always in the details.

I had totally forgotten about some of this! In my State we have a no more than 2 people per elevator rule. Even if we do relax our rules here we’ve been told there is zero chance we can return to the office until the elevator restrictions are completely lifted. 
 

We work in a 55 floor office tower with about a hundred thousand other folks. With the restrictions in place .. if I arrived at the office at 8am I might get an elevator by noon 😂 

[HowardK]

5 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Dr Gottlieb makes a lot of definitive statements on what cruise lines will, maybe, someday do is based on pure speculation. Statements on how Biden has done wonderful with vaccines is not really true, we are still vaccinating with medication purchased by Trump. And the one direct action by Biden to get random companies to manufacture J&J vaccines resulted in 15 million doses failing quality check...

how many more got by the QC and were administered. 

I always worried about QC- I read where there was a Kroger where people were told later the vaccine did not contain the correct dosage if any. I was relieved when I had any side effects as it made me more comfortable I actually received one.

 

[harkinmr]

7 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Dr Gottlieb makes a lot of definitive statements on what cruise lines will, maybe, someday do is based on pure speculation. Statements on how Biden has done wonderful with vaccines is not really true, we are still vaccinating with medication purchased by Trump. And the one direct action by Biden to get random companies to manufacture J&J vaccines resulted in 15 million doses failing quality check...

how many more got by the QC and were administered. 

"Purchasing vaccine" and actually distributing it are two entirely different things.  And, as I recall, the prior administration passed on purchasing additional vaccines from Pfizer when they were offered.  President Biden was the one to purchase the additional vaccines, not only from Pfizer but Moderna and J&J, in order to supply the number of doses that would actually be needed to vaccinate the US population, and then proceeded to put in place a federal program and resources to distribute the vaccine replacing an essentially non-existent vaccine distribution plan.  The prior administration had left distribution entirely up to the states and was concentrating on "other things".  The Emergent relationship was not established under Biden, but had been in place for years.  It has come to light that the prior administration's FDA was aware of certain failures in the Emergent production process but did not adequately address them.  No wonder things happened the way they did.