1,359 Cruise Ship COVID-19 Cases Have Been Recorded In 4 Months: CDC

More than 1,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported on cruise ships sailing in the United States over the past four months, according to new data.

Between June 26 and Oct. 21, health officials recorded 1,359 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among passengers and crew members on cruise ships traveling from the U.S. Of the total number of cases, 49 people were hospitalized and 38 required medical evacuations, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The figures represent 0.23% of all passengers who set sail on cruise ships from June to October. The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) estimated that at least 600,000 passengers sailed from U.S. ports during the same period.

The data comes after the CDC extended its conditional sailing order (CSO) with minor modifications until Jan. 15, 2022. The order replaced an earlier ban placed on October 2020, which required ships to sail with at least 95% of people vaccinated and to impose mask mandates onboard. That order expired on Nov. 1.

The new order, albeit with some tweaks, includes new procedures for ships coming into the U.S. waters after operating in other jurisdictions. The new order will also allow ships to switch to a lower number of vaccines passengers, as long as they follow certain instructions.

All foreign-flagged cruise ships carrying at least 250 passengers are also required to follow the order. They must also give the CDC access to the health records of their passengers upon request. Cruise lines without COVID-19 Conditional Sailing Certificate from the CDC will not be allowed to operate in U.S. waters.

“After the expiration of this temporary extension next year, CDC intends to transition to a voluntary program,” the CDC said in a press release. “This transition will continue strong measures to detect, mitigate, and control the spread of COVID, and it will align with other travel orders including the global contract tracing and global testing orders.”

Aimee Treffiletti, a captain in the U.S. Public Health Service and lead for the CDC’s maritime unit, told The Washington Post that more information about the agency’s voluntary program would be announced in the future.