The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has withdrawn its risk assessment of cruise travel after more than two years of warning travelers about the dangers of contracting COVID on a cruise ship amid the pandemic.
“Travel health advisories” have been issued by the CDC to inform travelers about health issues that could affect their health, such as outbreaks and natural disasters, among others. The removal of the advisory does not mean that the agency considers the activity risk-free; rather, it means that from now on, travelers themselves will be responsible for making these assessments: “Travelers will make their own risk assessment when deciding to travel on a cruise, just as they do in all other travel settings,” said David Daigle, Associate Director of Communications for the CDC’s Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response.
Daigle added that the CDC's decision to withdraw the advisory is based on the current state of the pandemic and the decline in COVID cases on cruise ships over the past few weeks.
“The CDC’s decision to completely remove its risk assessment for cruise ships recognizes the effective public health measures in place on cruise ships and marks a beginning of leveling the playing field for cruise ships with similar places on land, for the first time since March 2020,” the Cruise Lines International Association said in a statement shared by Laziza Lambert, CLIA’s director of strategic communications and public affairs.
The announcement comes just over two weeks after the CDC lowered the risk level on cruise ships from "Level 3" to "Level 2," thus moving to a moderate risk of COVID.
