Report

Public Health Responses to COVID-19 Outbreaks on Cruise Ships - Worldwide, February-March 2020

Cohen, Nicole J, Wittry, Beth, Chu, Victoria, Watt, James, Bozio, Catherine, Green, Gary, Toda, Mitsuru, Bertulfo, Mary Catherine, Stockman, Lauren, Novak, Ryan T, Sarisky, John, Blocher, Tricia, Glenn-Finer, Rosie, Davis, Shai, Halsey, Eric S, Weinberg, Michelle, Matyas, Bela, Jones, Jefferson, Lamba, Katherine, Pan, Chao-Yang, Bjork, Adam, Behravesh, Casey Barton, Pesik, Nicki, Braden, Zachary, Chai, Shua, Fitter, David, Kapella, Bryan K, Poser, Sarah, Ishizumi, Atsuyoshi, Mead, Paul S, McColloch, Audrey, Marston, Barbara J, Dooling, Kathleen, Rinker, Robin A, Scheuer, Tara, Hacker, Jill, Wadford, Debra A, Hsieh, Kristina, McDonald, Robert, Guevara, Hugo, Snyder, Robert E, Canty, Paul T, Kapuszinsky, Beatrix, Readhead, Adam, Weidle, Paul, Ntui, Asundep, Rose, Dale, Rodriguez, Luis, Wagner, Riley, Miller, Glen, Morris, Mary Kate, Kobayashi, Miwako, Saguar, Estela, Ivey, Kathryn, Herzig, Carolyn, Ryan, Matthew, Murray, Erin L, Smith, Paul W, Murphy, Ryan, Wallace, Megan, Chatham-Stephens, Kevin, Kadzik, Melissa, Morales, Christina, Stewart, Andrea, Jacobson, Kathleen R, Tardivel, Kara, Bregman, Brooke, Honein, Margar

2020

Overview

On February 21, CDC recommended avoiding travel on cruise ships in Southeast Asia; on March 8, this recommendation was broadened to include deferring all cruise ship travel worldwide for those with underlying health conditions and for persons aged >65 years. During February 16-23, nearly 1,000 persons were repatriated by air to their home countries, including 329 persons who returned to the United States and entered quarantine or isolation.^ The remaining passengers who had negative SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test results,·· no respiratory symptoms, and no close contact with a person with a confirmed case of COVID-19 completed a 14-day ship-based quarantine before disembarkation. Cases linked with cruise travel have been reported to CDC in at least 15 states. Since February, multiple international cruises have been implicated in reports of COVID-19 cases, including at least 60 cases in the United States from Nile River cruises in Egypt (Figure 2). [...]of the Diamond Princess outbreak, it became apparent that passengers disembarking from cruise ships could be a source of community transmission. [...]aggressive efforts to contain transmission on board and prevent further transmission upon disembarkation and repatriation were instituted.

• Publisher: U.S. Center for Disease Control