CDC reevaluating the need for testing

[BermudaBound2014]

CDC is reevaluating testing for cruise ships. IMO, it's only a matter of time. The question remains, how much time does 'may soon be forthcoming" actually entail?

 

"How is cruise travel different, and what options may be available to ease testing requirements for cruise travelers? The CDC has stated that the situation is being reevaluated and changes may soon be forthcoming."

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/the-cdc-is-reevaluating-testing-for-cruise-ships/74496

 

 

[Sand and Seas]

Thanks for posting!   Very interesting to read.

 

The article did note that a possible option would be for cruise lines to transition to requiring pre-cruise testing only for those who are not fully vaccinated or boosted.   Those who are fully vaccinated but still test positive are usually asymptomatic or have milder symptoms.  It seems like a sensible option for a gradual return to 'normal'.   

 

As my son pointed out to me, we will soon be in flu season again, yet we are not required to show proof of a negative flu test prior to travel.    

[The Shrike]

1 hour ago, Sand and Seas said:

Thanks for posting!   Very interesting to read.

---

As my son pointed out to me, we will soon be in flu season again, yet we are not required to show proof of a negative flu test prior to travel.    

Whoa, whoa, whoa, we can't allow common sense into the discussion!!!  😄

Edited June 21, 2022 by The Shrike

[ChiefMateJRK]

Very nice!

[Coastalbreezes]

What I'd also really like to see happen is dropping the requirement for all crew to wear masks. They are all double (and some triple vaxxed) same as passengers.

[LaCal]

26 minutes ago, Coastalbreezes said:

What I'd also really like to see happen is dropping the requirement for all crew to wear masks. They are all double (and some triple vaxxed) same as passengers.

Most of the crew I’ve spoken with said they’ll continue wearing masks even if it’s wasn’t mandated they do….that was 7 outta 10 I asked on my last cruise 

[BklynBorn47]

34 minutes ago, LaCal said:

Most of the crew I’ve spoken with said they’ll continue wearing masks even if it’s wasn’t mandated they do….that was 7 outta 10 I asked on my last cruise 

That was my experience as well.  

[vacation44]

 

9 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

CDC is reevaluating testing for cruise ships. IMO, it's only a matter of time. The question remains, how much time does 'may soon be forthcoming" actually entail?

 

"How is cruise travel different, and what options may be available to ease testing requirements for cruise travelers? The CDC has stated that the situation is being reevaluated and changes may soon be forthcoming."

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/the-cdc-is-reevaluating-testing-for-cruise-ships/74496

 

 

Thank you for posting this latest news.

[Karaboudjan]

10 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

CDC is reevaluating testing for cruise ships. IMO, it's only a matter of time. The question remains, how much time does 'may soon be forthcoming" actually entail?

 

"How is cruise travel different, and what options may be available to ease testing requirements for cruise travelers? The CDC has stated that the situation is being reevaluated and changes may soon be forthcoming."

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/the-cdc-is-reevaluating-testing-for-cruise-ships/74496

 

 

 

I agree that it's only a matter of time, but it seems unlikely that anything would change while only 5% of the ships being tracked are in a Green status.  It looks like the 'forthcoming' bit is CruiseHive/CLIA's editorializing, not from the CDC statement.

[deliver42]

I can see the CDC removing the tests for fully vaxxed guests, while unvaxxed will still have to test. I. personally, have said before and will continue to say that i think the testing is ridiculous because it only means at that moment you are negative. By the time you go on the ship 2 days later, you can be positive and not even know it.

[Markanddonna]

25 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

I can see the CDC removing the tests for fully vaxxed guests, while unvaxxed will still have to test. I. personally, have said before and will continue to say that i think the testing is ridiculous because it only means at that moment you are negative. By the time you go on the ship 2 days later, you can be positive and not even know it.

It is amazing how many people have a false sense of security thinking that tested passengers don't have COVID. Recent cruises where COVID starts flaring up by the end of the week shows this thinking is folly.  We were on a TA with five sea days on the front (nixing the opportunity to bring it on at a port on route and COVID reared its ugly head by day six.

[CrazyTrain2]

I have hope, but the empirical ship data THAT NO OTHER TRANSPORTATION vehicle must adhere to is difficult to counter.  Cruising is the only transportation or entertainment vehicle that has to report their Covid cases daily to the CDC.  Even then it is muddled like lime and mint from a Mojito into an opaque color scheme.  Just about every ship is still in "Mimosa ORANGE" status - or, Is that an Orange Julius I see there.

 

That being said there is political pressure to "return to normal" ahead of the November elections. Plant the flag of Covid victory if you will {a fool's folly when dealing with a virus}. Not that politics should ever enter into public health 🤔.

[Karaboudjan]

44 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

I can see the CDC removing the tests for fully vaxxed guests, while unvaxxed will still have to test. I. personally, have said before and will continue to say that i think the testing is ridiculous because it only means at that moment you are negative. By the time you go on the ship 2 days later, you can be positive and not even know it.

 

16 minutes ago, Markanddonna said:

It is amazing how many people have a false sense of security thinking that tested passengers don't have COVID. Recent cruises where COVID starts flaring up by the end of the week shows this thinking is folly.  We were on a TA with five sea days on the front (nixing the opportunity to bring it on at a port on route and COVID reared its ugly head by day six.

 

True, but just because testing is not infallible does not make it worthless.  Even if you only filter out some of the infected people that can still make a big difference in the eventual number of cases on the ship.

[CrazyTrain2]

13 minutes ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

 

True, but just because testing is not infallible does not make it worthless.  Even if you only filter out some of the infected people that can still make a big difference in the eventual number of cases on the ship.

Given the rapid spread of Omicron BA.2 through BA.5 - the testing filtering process only delays the ship's symptomatic onset by one day at the most.  The Rho factor is over 10 with the newer Omicron variants meaning testing only slightly slows the spread of the virus on a ship with several thousand passengers.  If need proof, look at how many cruises went off this summer from the entire fleet and hardly any ship could get out of "ORANGE" status for more than a day.  If the passengers didn't bring it on, the crew (tested bi weekly) was already infected and spreading it behind the scenes (not intentionally).

 

As Covid progresses and evolves, expect even more virulent mutations to emerge making testing even less useful and less accurate.  

Edited June 21, 2022 by CrazyTrain2

[BermudaBound2014]

4 hours ago, LaCal said:

Most of the crew I’ve spoken with said they’ll continue wearing masks even if it’s wasn’t mandated they do….that was 7 outta 10 I asked on my last cruise 

 

4 hours ago, BklynBorn47 said:

That was my experience as well.  

 

This is not the overwhelming sentiment on crew social. I have not read one positive thing about wearing masks from the crew. Virtually all crew want the masking (and weekly testing) long gone. If crew social is to be believed, there are quite a few crew members willing to resign contracts once mandatory masks are eliminated.

 

Personally, I highly doubt 'most' crew will continue mask wearing when it isn't mandated.  Once the mandatory masks are eliminated for crew, we will have the answer. 

[apietros]

5 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

 

This is not the overwhelming sentiment on crew social. I have not read one positive thing about wearing masks from the crew. Virtually all crew want the masking (and weekly testing) long gone. If crew social is to be believed, there are quite a few crew members willing to resign contracts once mandatory masks are eliminated.

 

Personally, I highly doubt 'most' crew will continue mask wearing when it isn't mandated.  Once the mandatory masks are eliminated for crew, we will have the answer. 

What is crew social?

[BermudaBound2014]

3 minutes ago, apietros said:

What is crew social?

 

Social media for crew. There are large social sites which include all cruise lines. Then there are sights specific to cruise lines. And then there are sites specific to ship. Most of the time you must be invited to join. 

Edited June 21, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[Karaboudjan]

1 hour ago, CrazyTrain2 said:

Given the rapid spread of Omicron BA.2 through BA.5 - the testing filtering process only delays the ship's symptomatic onset by one day at the most.  The Rho factor is over 10 with the newer Omicron variants meaning testing only slightly slows the spread of the virus on a ship with several thousand passengers.  If need proof, look at how many cruises went off this summer from the entire fleet and hardly any ship could get out of "ORANGE" status for more than a day.  If the passengers didn't bring it on, the crew (tested bi weekly) was already infected and spreading it behind the scenes (not intentionally).

 

As Covid progresses and evolves, expect even more virulent mutations to emerge making testing even less useful and less accurate.  

 

It doesn't really matter what the R number is.  If you filter out even half of the infected people then you have accomplished something.  Yes, there are plenty of infections on ships now, but it would probably be significantly worse with no testing. 

 

Maybe the virus will mutate to the point where pre-cruise testing is pointless to prevent infections, but I don't think we are there yet and I expect that testing will go away for economic reasons long before that.

[BermudaBound2014]

Just now, Karaboudjan said:

.............and I expect that testing will go away for economic reasons long before that.

 

Bingo! Cruise lines simply can't afford to continue testing/quarantining/rinse/repeat.

 

CCL releases their quarterlies on Friday. The industry all follows in sync. Friday will be telling. 

[CrazyTrain2]

2 minutes ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

It doesn't really matter what the R number is.  If you filter out even half of the infected people then you have accomplished something.  Yes, there are plenty of infections on ships now, but it would probably be significantly worse with no testing. 

 

Maybe the virus will mutate to the point where pre-cruise testing is pointless to prevent infections, but I don't think we are there yet and I expect that testing will go away for economic reasons long before that.

I hear ya, but no testing would only have a minimal affect because the virus spreads so fast.  If you only have 10 people infectious on the ship with testing vs 40 people without you will be at the same place (40 people infected) within 12 -18 hours.  So all the testing does is delay equivalent infection numbers by a few hours.  Omicron is uncontrollable in a civilian environment.  These newly infected people won't be symptomatic for about 3-4 days, but by day 6 you'll be hard pressed to be in the MDR without somebody having "allergies".

 

Covid is endemic and part of the new human condition.

 

Cruise on my friends!

[apietros]

17 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

Social media for crew. There are large social sites which include all cruise lines. Then there are sights specific to cruise lines. And then there are sites specific to ship. Most of the time you must be invited to join. 

thank you! Sounds very informative if you are lucky enough to be asked to join.

[Markanddonna]

2 hours ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

It doesn't really matter what the R number is.  If you filter out even half of the infected people then you have accomplished something.  Yes, there are plenty of infections on ships now, but it would probably be significantly worse with no testing. 

 

Unfortunately, this is just something you believe is true without any REAL scientific proof.

[BermudaBound2014]

As suspected after Viking removed testing requirements, others will join. The first is CCL and they are testing the waters in Europe with a P&O ship. It's only a matter of time....

 

"P&O Cruises, the largest UK-based cruise line, temporarily removes the testing mandate for at least one ship."

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-owned-cruise-line-temporarily-drops-pre-departure-testing/74640

Edited June 21, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[Karaboudjan]

2 hours ago, Markanddonna said:

Unfortunately, this is just something you believe is true without any REAL scientific proof.

 

So?

[Debde]

Following.

Like I said on the other thread-fully vaxed and boosted and testing is what's keeping me from cruising.

Ready to start spending my money once it is lifted!!