NEW YORK - The US State Department on Sunday advised Americans against travelling on cruise ships, warning that they presented a higher risk of coronavirus infection and made US citizens vulnerable to possible international travel restrictions, including quarantines.
Americans should not rely on being evacuated if other countries subject them to quarantine, the department said. The decision to caution Americans capped weeks of discussions on the Trump administration's inter-agency task force about how to communicate alarm about cruise ships after hundreds of Americans, including some who tested positive for the virus, were evacuated from the Diamond Princess off the coast of Japan, a process rife with confusion and disorder.
After the Grand Princess docks, those aboard will be taken to military facilities around the country to be tested and quarantined for 14 days, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. "This is a fluid situation," the State Department notice said, adding that the CDC recommends that older adults, in addition to those with underlying health problems, should avoid any setting that makes them more vulnerable to disease.