Testing Dilema

[fkfad]

Both my husband and I are recovering from Covid (no serious complications -- just cold-like symptoms).  We are booked on the July 31 Rotterdam cruise out of Amsterdam.  We asked our doctor when can we re-test to show a negative result.  His answer -- you could test positive for up to three months.  So, now what?!?  We need to show a negative test result from three days before we set sail -- July 28 -- 6 weeks from today...  Has anyone run into this situation?  Just one more thing for me to worry about!

[Nickelpenny]

14 minutes ago, fkfad said:

Both my husband and I are recovering from Covid (no serious complications -- just cold-like symptoms).  We are booked on the July 31 Rotterdam cruise out of Amsterdam.  We asked our doctor when can we re-test to show a negative result.  His answer -- you could test positive for up to three months.  So, now what?!?  We need to show a negative test result from three days before we set sail -- July 28 -- 6 weeks from today...  Has anyone run into this situation?  Just one more thing for me to worry about!

You can apply for a certificate of recovery that is good for 90 days after your infection.  You have to have a verification of a positive test and then send off for the certification about 10-15 days after the date of + test. There is one for the US and an EU one.  There is a fee for it.  So if you test negative before your cruise, no problem.  If you test +, then you will have your documentation!! 

[Ryten]

We have not run into this problem with HAL but are dealing with it now on a River cruise leaving form Amsterdam the first week of July. The River cruise test daily. My wife contracted COVID two weeks ago and as you indicated you can get a positive finding for up to 90 days after infection. The River cruises are permitting the use of a "Letter of Recovery" attested to by a medical care facility/doctor. There are a ton of form Letters if you Google it. The Letter essentially says you have contracted COVID but are medically cleared and are in good health otherwise and the positive findings are the result of the lingering infection. I looked at HAL's COVID policy but do not see whether the accept a Letter of Recovery although monetarily it would make sense for them to do so. I guess you need to contact HAL directly for clarification and obtain written confirmation as to their policy. Good luck and hope you will be able cruise.

[Nickelpenny]

This is from HAL's website  for US and Canada travel:

Exceptions may apply for asymptomatic guests that have tested positive for COVID-19 in the 90 days prior to embarkation, but not less than 10 days prior to embarkation, and are fully recovered. Guests will need to provide a letter of recovery from their doctor and, laboratory test results that were taken at least 10 or more days prior to embarkation, and not older than 90 days.
 

The Documentation of Recovery prerequisites include:   

1.    Paper or electronic copies of the positive viral test result from a certified laboratory (dated no more than 90 days ago), or

2.    A valid digital COVID-19 Certificate (DCC) or a document issued by a competent authority showing confirmed previous infection.

 

 

For EU travel:

 

Exceptions may apply for asymptomatic guests who have tested positive for COVID-19 within 90 days of their embarkation if they are at least 10 days past their COVID-19 infection, are fully recovered with no symptoms and produce documentation of recovery from COVID-19 infection. 
 

Documentation of Recovery consists of the following: 

• Paper or electronic copies of the positive viral test result from a certified laboratory (dated no more than 90 days ago), or 
• A valid digital COVID-19 Certificate (DCC) or a document issued byan health or government authority showing confirmed previous infection. 
   

Guest who present these documents will need to go through a secondary screening at the terminal, and boarding will be approved at the medical staff’s discretion.

[fkfad]

Thank you to all who replied!  I found the information on the HAl website after posting here.  I then realized that, even though I knew I had Corona (my husband tested positive and I tested negative at the time), I needed to get tested again in order to have an official record of a positive test.  I took care of that this morning.  Now, we just need to hope for negative test results prior to our cruise so that we don't need to jump through hoops in order to get on the ship.  Ugh!!

 

[LJProk]

My husband tested positive the week before we left. But was fever free and symptom free by the time we went, and was more than 10 days out from original positive test. He went back to an urgent care and got a letter saying he was safe to travel. Thankfully, when we had to test in Denali before our sea portion began he tested negative. They were using the rapid antigen testing for us. But he had his paperwork (original date of positive and letter from Dr) just in case.

[Kristal Blade]

Having had Covid at the end of March this year I was showing a negative LFT just over a week later. But it took longer for a PCR to show negative. That was negative just under 3 weeks later.