While on a cruise in May of this year on RCCL, I asked if they indeed washed the chips. They said that they did a few times, but were no longer doing it. They did have staff constantly cleaning the railings, washroom doors, elevator buttons, etc. during the entire cruise.

This article below from www.cruiseserver.net talks about the steps they took after this outbreak. It mentions that they cleaned slot machines and casino furnishings but, chips were not mentioned.

Regal Princess Hit with Virus
More than 300 passengers and crew on board Princess' Regal Princess became ill during a North Atlantic voyage forcing the cruise line to cancel several ports of call and head for New York ahead of schedule. Princess officials said that only two passengers were still ill when the ship arrived in New York but that as many as 296 of the 2,000 passengers on board had become during the 16-day cruise. In addition, 44 crew members suffered similar symptoms during the trip.

Both the passengers and crew members reported symptoms that were consistent with the Norwalk-like virus that has affected numerous cruise ships over the past several years. Since the outbreak on the Regal Princess affected more than three percent of the passengers on the ship the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was required to investigate the incident.

Symptoms of the virus include vomiting, diarrhea, headache, low-grade fever and abdominal cramps. They symptoms generally last for 24-48 hours. It is one of the most common viruses and affects as many as 23 million people, mostly on land, each year according to the CDC. The virus is spread through food and water and close contact with infected people or things they have touched by infected parties. The virus can cause dehydration in the elderly and those with other chronic illnesses.

According to Princess the pattern of the spread of illness suggests that the virus was most likely introduced onto the ship in Copenhagen by a passenger with the illness

As a result of the outbreak, scheduled stops in Greenland and St. John's, Newfoundland were cancelled and the ship arrived in New York a day ahead of schedule in order for the crew to conduct a more thorough two-day scrubbing of the vessel while no passengers were on board. According to Princess cruise line spokeswoman Julie Benson "It is much easier to sanitize a ship when there are no passengers," Benson said. "The virus is tough and highly contagious. You can clean an elevator button and someone can reinfect it the next minute."

In a statement issued today, Princess outlined the steps taken on board the Regal Princess to contain the outbreak. These included:
- Using a powerful sanitation solution to regularly clean all food and beverage areas of the galley, affected passenger cabins, public restrooms and all surfaces in the ship's public areas (e.g. handrails, door knobs, elevator buttons) including soft furnishings, multiple times each day
- Suspension of all galley tours
- Slot machines and casino furnishings were sanitized several times daily
- Gym equipment was sanitized regularly
- Public restroom doors were propped open to reduce risks of unwitting door handle contamination
- Bar snacks were offered in single servings only
- All dishwashers were being checked hourly to ensure they were operating at a temperature of 165F or above
- Passengers who reported to the medical center with symptoms were treated, without charge. Passengers who were unwell were asked to isolate themselves in their stateroom until non contagious and comply with the doctor's instructions. Unwell passengers were also asked not to proceed ashore, and any shore excursion costs were refunded.
- Room service was provided to affected passengers and every effort was made to make them as comfortable as possible.
- As drinking large amounts of clear fluids is helpful for diarrhea, princess provided complimentary bottled water to affected passengers.

Princess offered passengers a partial refund for the one day that was missed plus an on board credit of $300. The cruise line also refunded any shore excursions scheduled for the port of St. John's, and any government fees and taxes for the two missed ports.