Reporting Death or Illness on Ships

What to know

Federal regulations (42 CFR 71.21) require the master of a ship sailing from a non-US port destined to a US port to immediately report to CDC 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.

Required Reporting

Note:‎

This page does not include information related to requested viral acute respiratory illness (ARI, e.g., COVID-19, influenza, RSV) reporting for cruise ships. For information on ARI reporting for cruise ships, see Guidance for Cruise Ships on Management of ARI due to Viral Infection.

Reports must immediately be made to the CDC Port Health Station at or nearest the U.S. port of arrival. For ships arriving in the United States, this includes all deaths or illnesses (as specified in the regulatory definition for "ill person") that occurred within 15 days prior to arrival. For ships that have left the United States and will be returning to a U.S. port during the same voyage, this includes all deaths or illnesses that occurred within 15 days of departure.

Ships are required to report the following information to CDC:

  • Death
  • Signs and symptoms of serious communicable diseases of public health concern are included in the regulatory definition of "ill person". Ships are required to report based on one or more parts of the definition listed below:

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;

Scenario B

Fever* that has persisted for more than 48 hours;

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*;

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.

* 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.

** Note: Cruise ships carrying 13 or more passengers must continue to report cases of acute gastroenteritis or diarrhea to CDC Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP).

Requested Reporting

CDC additionally requests reporting of the following communicable diseases of public health concern from maritime conveyances, even if they don't meet the "ill person" definition:

Diseases of Public Health Concern
Diphtheria Novel or reemerging influenza causing or with potential to cause a pandemic
Infectious tuberculosis Novel coronavirus disease causing or with potential to cause a pandemic
Measles Pertussis (whooping cough)
Mumps Plague
Mpox Smallpox
Rubella (German measles) Varicella (chickenpox)
Meningococcal disease Viral hemorrhagic fevers

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.

Reporting Death or Illness on Ships: How to Report
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 deaths and any illnesses meeting regulatory definition Fill out CDC’s Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form.
Cruise ships and passenger ferries arriving from a non-US port Gastrointestinal (GI) Illness[1] 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) meeting regulatory definition Fill out CDC’s Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form.
Deaths

[1] Gastrointestinal Illness (GI) includes norovirus or other viruses that cause acute gastroenteritis, Shigella, Salmonella, hepatitis A, hepatitis E, or “suspected” hepatitis.

Note:

Contact Information

Instructions for Using the Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form

Please ensure that any personally identifiable information (PII)* sent via email is password-protected. Sections 1-4 do not contain PII.

Step 1

Download the Maritime Conveyance Illness or Death Investigation Form. Please make sure you are using the most updated form. Use a separate form for each ill or deceased person.

Step 2

Complete Sections 1-4. For details on what's required to be reported, see Required Reporting.

Step 3

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.

Step 4

If contacted by a CDC Port Health Station after your form is submitted:

A CDC Port Health Station may contact you to obtain additional information. Please Do NOT submit PII (i.e., Section 5) unless the quarantine section asks you to do so.

Note: Because this section contains PIIA, print out this section of the form and fill it out by hand.

Step 5

Submit Section 5 only by encrypted email or telephone.

For More Information

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Content Source:
National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID)
  1. 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.