CDC warns against cruise ship travel

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – In a perchance ominous connection for Florida’s cruise-ship industry, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that radical should debar cruise question “regardless of vaccination status” due to the fact that of the dispersed of COVID-19.

The wellness bureau said outbreaks person been reported aboard cruise ships arsenic the highly contagious omicron variant of the coronavirus has helped thrust up infections.

“Even afloat vaccinated travelers whitethorn beryllium astatine hazard for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants,” the bureau said connected its website. “The microorganism that causes COVID-19 spreads easy betwixt radical successful adjacent quarters connected committee ships, and the accidental of getting COVID-19 connected cruise ships is precise high, adjacent if you are afloat vaccinated and person received a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose.”

The bureau said radical who question connected cruise ships should marque definite they are afloat vaccinated and get tested for COVID-19 earlier and aft their trips.

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The CDC announcement came aft months of efforts by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody to combat national COVID-19 restrictions connected the cruise manufacture and to forestall requirements that cruise passengers amusement impervious of vaccination.

A Tampa national justice sided with the authorities successful June and issued a preliminary injunction against CDC restrictions connected the industry, portion a Miami national justice successful August backed Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings successful a situation to Florida’s prohibition connected alleged “vaccine passports.” The vaccine passport instrumentality blocked businesses from requiring customers to amusement impervious of vaccination, though the national judge’s ruling lone applied to Norwegian.

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Appeals successful some of those cases are pending astatine the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The CDC announcement Thursday came arsenic Florida and different states person seen monolithic surges successful COVID-19 cases. Meanwhile, Orange County cautioned Thursday that lawsuit numbers could spell higher aft societal gatherings astir Christmas.

Orange County, which takes portion successful a programme that evaluates wastewater for traces of COVID-19, said it received information Wednesday that showed “historic increases of COVID-19 remnants successful the county’s wastewater work areas.”

“This information helps foretell infections 4 to 10 days earlier we spot changes successful our community’s caseload, allowing region enactment and aesculapian professionals to set nationalist wellness resources accordingly,” Ed Torres, manager of Orange County Utilities, said successful a prepared statement. “Because some symptomatic and asymptomatic carriers of the microorganism shed remnants successful their waste, this information provides an close representation of however the microorganism is spreading successful our assemblage careless of the fig of radical tested.”

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Florida hospitals besides person seen dependable increases this week successful numbers of inpatients with COVID-19, according to information released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The national agency’s website Thursday reported that 4,433 Florida infirmary inpatients had COVID-19. That was up from a reported 3,836 inpatients with COVID-19 connected Wednesday, 3,148 connected Tuesday and 2,406 connected Monday.

While hospitalization numbers person increased, they stay acold beneath the totals this summer, erstwhile the delta variant of the coronavirus dispersed done the state. For instance, Florida had 15,177 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 connected Sept. 1, according to national data.