| CLIA Update 20 Oct 21

WITH Joel Katz, MD, CLIA Australasia – Time to catch up:
As the first stages of an
international travel revival
began in Australia this week,
we’re reminded again how far
behind the rest of the world our
governments have fallen when it
comes to cruising.
Australia is still one of the
only major cruise markets in
the world where governments
have no agreed plan in place for
cruising’s revival, yet Aussies
in some states can now travel
overseas to sail in countries
where ships have been back in
operation for months.
Despite our frustrations,
there is a clear positive change
in the discussions CLIA has
been having with governments
around cruising.
The Australian Government
has said there is no reason why
domestic and international
cruising cannot begin this
summer once 80% vaccination
levels have been reached, so
our challenge is to translate
this into action and agree upon
concrete plans.
In particular, we need action
from the states.
Once the federal cruise
suspension is lifted, we will
need agreed plans in place at
the state and territory level
before we can implement
health protocols.