Mandatory that Doc is on board!

[PTC DAWG]

Anyone who thinks the Major Cruise Lines aren't carrying Dr's now...they are living in fantasy land.  Just more bloviating by a Govt Agency to rile people up about the ills of Cruising.  

[Ride-The-Waves]

39 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

Anyone who thinks the Major Cruise Lines aren't carrying Dr's now...they are living in fantasy land.  Just more bloviating by a Govt Agency to rile people up about the ills of Cruising.  

Yes - they have doctors on board.  However, your comment about government agencies is disingenuous and in poor taste.  I would expect it would be difficult to find an example of a "government agency riling unpeople about the ills of cruising."  Claims like that come more from anti-vaxxers and their ilk.  

[chengkp75]

53 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

Anyone who thinks the Major Cruise Lines aren't carrying Dr's now...they are living in fantasy land.  Just more bloviating by a Govt Agency to rile people up about the ills of Cruising.  

 

9 minutes ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Yes - they have doctors on board.  However, your comment about government agencies is disingenuous and in poor taste.  I would expect it would be difficult to find an example of a "government agency riling unpeople about the ills of cruising."  Claims like that come more from anti-vaxxers and their ilk.  

It's not a "government agency", it is a grandstanding US Senator.

[USCcruisecrazy]

Pretty interesting transition...I made a simple post about Crusie ships in general being required to have a doctor on board and eventually it became a political post about what soemone's intentions may or may not have been.  Thanks for the comments...it never ceases to amaze me...sort of like whispering in someone's ear and when it gets around the room, the message is not even close to the original.  LOL!!!

[gmjc2]

22 hours ago, memoak said:

I have never been on a Princess cruise where there has not been a doctor 

Never been on any ship that did not have a doc onboard!

[Kamloops50]

On 12/14/2020 at 10:07 AM, USCcruisecrazy said:

The Cruise Passenger Protection Act was updated (if the Bill becomes Law) making it mandatory that cruise ships originating their cruise from a US Port have a certified Doctor on board.  The last time the Cruise Passenger Protection Act was updated in 2010 it only required that a Registered Nurse be on board.  I imagine this is a reaction to the COVID-19 situation.  Thoughts?? 

Ships have had Doctors on board for years. It's not a US Law but SOLAS ( Safety of Life at sea) is what covers cruise ships. That US law doesn't control the ships once they are outside the 12 mile line.

[chengkp75]

1 hour ago, Kamloops50 said:

Ships have had Doctors on board for years. It's not a US Law but SOLAS ( Safety of Life at sea) is what covers cruise ships. That US law doesn't control the ships once they are outside the 12 mile line.

Actually, it is MLC (Maritime Labor Convention), rather than SOLAS that requires the doctor.  And, the law in question, which has been stuck in both houses for over 6 years, more basically applies to consumer protections (seeing if the Cruise Bill of Rights is enforceable in US law), and so is mainly conjecture on the part of the legislators as to whether the provisions, including the new ones introduced this year, would be enforceable at any time.

[cruisequeen4ever]

As most have said, there’s always a doctor aboard Princess ships. Could this new requirement mean it must be an American certified doctor rather than a foreign one?

[skynight]

13 minutes ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

As most have said, there’s always a doctor aboard Princess ships. Could this new requirement mean it must be an American certified doctor rather than a foreign one?

Not likely. Ships are not U.S. flagged. Ship doctors I have conversed with were from the UK and South Africa.

[Kamloops50]

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

[memoak]

2 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

Every doctor I have met on Princess ships has either been from UK, EU or South Africa 

[skynight]

2 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

I don't know about certifications, but all the doctors I have met and spoken to  over the years have not been from the U.S.. Maybe certification means presenting qualified credentials rather than being certified to practice in U.S. States. 

[chengkp75]

3 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

That's if the bill passes.  It has been stuck in committee for years.  They are just adding padding to the bill that won't go anywhere.

[Daniel A]

3 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

That's if the bill passes.  It has been stuck in committee for years.  They are just adding padding to the bill that won't go anywhere.

We'll see.  As I read, that provision is in the Defense Appropriations Act and the President has said he will veto the law for other unrelated provisions but from what I've heard there is a veto proof majority for the bill.

[chengkp75]

4 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

We'll see.  As I read, that provision is in the Defense Appropriations Act and the President has said he will veto the law for other unrelated provisions but from what I've heard there is a veto proof majority for the bill.

I'm not sure how the new provisions can be in another bill, since they refer to "amendments" to the Cruise Passenger Protection Act, and that Act has not been passed.

[Daniel A]

23 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

I'm not sure how the new provisions can be in another bill, since they refer to "amendments" to the Cruise Passenger Protection Act, and that Act has not been passed.

I think Blumenthal called his amendments the Cruise Passenger Protection Act but the amendments are supposed to be amending the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act which passed in 2010.

[skynight]

38 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

We'll see.  As I read, that provision is in the Defense Appropriations Act and the President has said he will veto the law for other unrelated provisions but from what I've heard there is a veto proof majority for the bill.

After a brief search I found that the act does include an unrelated provision to have a certified doctor on board cruise ships along with some other cruise ship security provisions. In my brief review I did not find text that indicated that the doctor had to have certification to practice in the U.S. States. I think cruise lines would have difficulty finding U.S. State certified doctors. 

Edited December 18, 2020 by skynight

[Kamloops50]

31 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

I'm not sure how the new provisions can be in another bill, since they refer to "amendments" to the Cruise Passenger Protection Act, and that Act has not been passed.

They can attach what ever they want to a Bill. One Bill they actually tried to attach more funding for the high speed train from San Francisco to Los Angeles. For many bills to pass ,pet projects are added to them.

[chengkp75]

48 minutes ago, Kamloops50 said:

They can attach what ever they want to a Bill. One Bill they actually tried to attach more funding for the high speed train from San Francisco to Los Angeles. For many bills to pass ,pet projects are added to them.

I understand that, but if what he is attaching is merely an amendment to a bill that has not passed yet, not sure how the amendments can be enforced if the sections of the law are not passed yet.

[beg3yrs]

6 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

Another poster couldn't find that text and neither could I. What's your source? I'd like to read it.

[NMTraveller]

No Doctor counts unless it is Dr. Adam Bricker.

 

For river cruises that have better facilities on land I am not sure that this makes sense

Edited December 19, 2020 by NMTraveller

[Kamloops50]

21 minutes ago, beg3yrs said:

Another poster couldn't find that text and neither could I. What's your source? I'd like to read it.

There has been a number people on You Tube who are following the cruise industry very closely . Even CLIA has mentioned this . Their position is that most cruise lines already have qualified doctors on board.

Here are some links

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/tourism-cruises/article247764960.html

https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/defense-bill-cruise-ship-doctor-cameras-trump-veto

[gmjc2]

11 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

No Doctor counts unless it is Dr. Adam Bricker.

 

For river cruises that have better facilities on land I am not sure that this makes sense

VERY  TRUE!

[beg3yrs]

21 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

The law states US Certified doctors. Unless a doctor from the UK or South Africa is American certified. They probably can't be used.

Bold and italics added...

14 hours ago, Kamloops50 said:

There has been a number people on You Tube who are following the cruise industry very closely . Even CLIA has mentioned this . Their position is that most cruise lines already have qualified doctors on board.

Here are some links

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/tourism-cruises/article247764960.html

https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/defense-bill-cruise-ship-doctor-cameras-trump-veto

I am looking for a source that says "The law states US Certified doctors", a direct quote from your previous post. Nothing you've supplied says 'US Certified doctors', only that the doctors be trained. No mention of where they're trained. This makes a difference as most cruise lines have trained doctors but not generally from the US.

[Daniel A]

6 hours ago, beg3yrs said:

Bold and italics added...

I am looking for a source that says "The law states US Certified doctors", a direct quote from your previous post. Nothing you've supplied says 'US Certified doctors', only that the doctors be trained. No mention of where they're trained. This makes a difference as most cruise lines have trained doctors but not generally from the US.

When was the last time you went to a hospital or clinic in the US?  Look hard to find the doctor who went to med school in the US, so what's the difference between what you get on land versus what you'll get at sea?