Reporting Death or Illness on Ships
What You Need to Know
CDC and federal regulations require the master of a ship sailing from a non-US port destined to a US port to immediately report any death or certain illnesses among the ship’s passengers or crew, including travelers who have disembarked or were removed from the ship due to illness or death.
Note: This page does not include information related to COVID-19 reporting for cruise ships. For information on COVID-19 reporting for cruise ships, see Guidance for Cruise Ships on the Mitigation and Management of COVID-19.
Required Reporting
Ships are required to report the following information to CDC:
- Death
- Quarantinable diseases (both suspected or confirmed) listed in the President’s Executive Order: cholera, diphtheria, infectious tuberculosis, plague, smallpox, yellow fever, viral hemorrhagic fevers, severe acute respiratory syndromes, novel influenza viruses, and measles.
- Signs and symptoms of serious diseases of public health interest are included in the Federal Regulations. Ships are required to report based on one or more of the scenarios below:
Scenario A
Scenario A
Fever* accompanied by one or more of the following:
- skin rash,
- difficulty breathing or suspected or confirmed pneumonia,
- persistent cough or cough with bloody sputum,
- decreased consciousness or confusion of recent onset,
- new unexplained bruising or bleeding (without previous injury),
- persistent vomiting (other than sea sickness),
- headache with a stiff neck;
Fever* accompanied by one or more of the following:
- skin rash,
- difficulty breathing or suspected or confirmed pneumonia,
- persistent cough or cough with bloody sputum,
- decreased consciousness or confusion of recent onset,
- new unexplained bruising or bleeding (without previous injury),
- persistent vomiting (other than sea sickness),
- headache with a stiff neck;
Scenario B
Scenario B
Fever* that has persisted for more than 48 hours;
Fever* that has persisted for more than 48 hours;
Scenario C
Scenario C
Acute gastroenteritis, which means either:
- diarrhea, defined as three or more episodes of loose stools in a 24-hour period or what is above normal for the individual, or
- vomiting accompanied by one or more of the following: one or more episodes of loose stools in a 24-hour period, abdominal cramps, headache, muscle aches, or fever*;
Acute gastroenteritis, which means either:
- diarrhea, defined as three or more episodes of loose stools in a 24-hour period or what is above normal for the individual, or
- vomiting accompanied by one or more of the following: one or more episodes of loose stools in a 24-hour period, abdominal cramps, headache, muscle aches, or fever*;
Scenario D
Scenario D
Symptoms or other indications of communicable disease, as the Director may announce through posting of a notice in the Federal Register. CDC will notify partners in applicable industries and post on the CDC website.
Symptoms or other indications of communicable disease, as the Director may announce through posting of a notice in the Federal Register. CDC will notify partners in applicable industries and post on the CDC website.
* Medical staff should consider someone to have a fever if the ill person feels warm to the touch, gives a history of feeling feverish, or has an actual measured temperature of 100.4 °F [38 °C]) or greater.
How to Report
Based on the criteria in the table below, download the appropriate form, or send an email using the links found under the “How to Report” column. In addition, see detailed instructions for reporting located below the table.
| Vessel Type | Illness or Death | How to Report | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-cruise ships arriving from a non-US port (include cargo, container, tanker, bulk carriers, offshore ships, military/research, and other special purpose ships) | All Illnesses and Deaths | Fill out CDC’s Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form [PDF – 4 pages]. | |
| Cruise ships and passenger ferries arriving from a non-US port | Gastrointestinal (GI) Illness1 | Through CDC’s Maritime Illness Database and Reporting System (MIDRS). Email CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) if you need access to this system. | |
| Legionnaires’ Disease | Send an email to CDC’s Respiratory Diseases Branch (RDB). | ||
| All Other Illnesses (non-Legionnaires’ & non-GI) | Fill out CDC’s Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form [PDF – 4 pages]. | ||
| Deaths | |||
[1] Gastrointestinal Illness (GI) includes the diseases of norovirus, Shigella, Salmonella, hepatitis A, hepatitis E, or “suspected” hepatitis.
Note:
- Interstate voyages (i.e., ships sailing across US state borders) should contact the respective state and/or local health department to report illnesses or deaths.
- Intrastate voyages (i.e., ships sailing within US state borders) should contact the respective state and/or local health department to report illnesses or deaths.
Please ensure that any personally identifiable information (PII)* sent via email is password-protected. Sections 1-4 do not contain PII.
Submit the form by clicking on the “Send Via Email” button on the form. This form will be sent to the appropriate CDC Port Health Station and CDC’s Maritime Activity.
Note: Any death, including those attributed to a non-infectious cause (e.g., cardiovascular events or injuries), that occurs on board a cruise ship sailing from a non-US port destined to a US port must be reported to CDC immediately.
If a CDC Port Health Station contacts you for additional information, complete Section 5 (General Information about Ill or Deceased Person). Please Do NOT submit Section 5 unless the quarantine section asks you to do so.
Note: Because this section contains PII*, print out this section of the form and fill it out by hand.
*PII is any information that can be used alone or in combination to identify an individual. This includes names, addresses, phone numbers, dates (birth, hospital admission, travel), identifying numbers (passport, social security, driver’s license, alien), medical records, photographs, and for rare diseases, geographic locations.