Posted on 07/02/2021 7:19:30 AM PDT by Capt. Tom
When cruise ships depart from Florida’s ports in the coming months, some won’t require passengers to get the most effective pandemic life preserver there is — a Covid-19 vaccination.
That’s because of new legislation Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed that bars businesses from requiring customers to show proof of vaccinations. The law goes into effect Thursday and opponents say it could threaten the recovery of an industry that is vital to the state’s economy, in addition to making it difficult for cruise ship companies to put some teeth into the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccination recommendations.
At least 10 major cruise lines are headquartered in Florida, including Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, Norwegian Cruise Line and Disney Cruise Line.
Celebrity Cruises dropped its requirement that Florida passengers show proof of their shots. Royal Caribbean requires proof at certain ports, but none in Florida, and this week introduced a requirement complicating trips for the unvaccinated: those passengers must show proof of travel insurance.
Despite the law, two of the biggest cruise lines, Carnival and Norwegian have decided to impose proof-of-vaccination requirements, according to information published on their websites. Violations of the Florida law come with a maximum $5,000 penalty per violation.
“No corporation is above the law,” DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said in an email. “A couple of the biggest cruise lines have revised their policies, and we expect others to follow their example.”
First cruise from US port in more than 15 months sets sail When asked how Carnival intends to handle Florida’s new law, a spokesperson did not comment on the decision to break from the law and instead referred NBC News to its frequently-asked-questions page, which states that “guests will be asked to confirm their status as fully vaccinated for Covid-19 and provide proof of vaccination in advance of boarding,” unless a vaccination exemption is given in advance.
Norwegian, which requires guests to bring proof of vaccination, responded to inquiries with a link to its latest press release from early June about its upcoming U.S. voyages.
Democrats have denounced the new law and accused DeSantis of undermining both public health and the cruise industry.
"The governor is dictatorially imposing his will on Florida businesses trying to protect their customers, including cruise lines on whom our agriculture industry depends for millions in food sales," Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said in a statement to NBC News.
Fried, a Democrat, is running to unseat DeSantis in next year’s election.
Pushaw said the governor’s executive order is not likely to scare away seagoing travelers.
“It’s almost unheard of for a vaccinated person to get seriously ill with Covid-19,” she said in an email. “Therefore, people who are vaccinated should not be worried about getting infected from those who aren’t.”
When DeSantis signed legislation banning what he called “vaccine passports” in May, he said, “In Florida, your personal choice regarding vaccinations will be protected and no business or government entity will be able to deny you services based on your decision.”
Bari Golin-Blaugrund, spokeswoman for the Cruise Lines International Association, the industry’s trade group, called Florida “the heart and soul of the cruise world.”
“Prior to the pandemic, the industry directly and indirectly supported nearly 160,000 jobs in Florida.”
In 2019, 8.3 million of the 13.8 million people who boarded a cruise ship in the United States did so in Florida, Golin-Blaugrund added.
But Florida is not the only port of call for the cruise ship industry, and an NBC News survey of 17 lines serving the U.S. found that four are not following CDC recommendations that all eligible crew and passengers get vaccinated: the U.S.-based American Cruise Lines, the Italian-based Costa Cruises, and the Switzerland-based MSC Cruises and Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line.
American operates smaller ships for fewer than 250 passengers and is not subject to the same cruise-line regulations as the large operators.
“The rapid progress of vaccinations in the U.S. is very positive as we look toward the resumption of cruises,” MSC President Rubén Rodríguez said.
MSC has operated in Europe since last summer with tens of thousands of guests, both vaccinated and not, he said.
“MSC Cruises is a very inclusive family brand, and we want to welcome all guests, including kids and any adults who have not been vaccinated for medical or other reasons,” Rodríguez said.
Another company, Holland America Line, requires that passengers get vaccinated before coming aboard, but also stated the requirement is “subject to change.” Royal Caribbean International requires vaccinations for passengers, but only if they are departing from these four ports: Seattle; Galveston, Texas; Nassau, the Bahamas; and Limassol, Cyprus.
While Golin-Blaugrund said her industry is “overwhelmingly supportive of the vaccine,” she added that since children under 12 don’t have access to Covid-19 vaccines, “100 percent vaccination is just not an option for families.”
The CDC has provided two ways of getting cruise ships certified to sail again given these limitations: reach the threshold of 95 percent vaccination for passengers and 95 percent for crew members, or have cruise ships test their protocols ahead of trips.
“This pathway requires simulated voyages, or test sailings, with volunteer passengers before these ships can obtain the conditional sailing certificate needed to resume commercial operations from U.S. ports,” Golin-Blaugrund said.
Still, even as those test cruises resumed last month in American waters, there already have been reports of Covid-19 outbreaks on ships not regulated by the CDC.
Two passengers aboard the Celebrity Millennium, which sailed out of St. Maarten in the Caribbean on June 5, and was supposed to be a “fully vaccinated” ship, tested positive for Covid-19. It is operated by Celebrity, which is a Royal Caribbean subsidiary.
Royal Caribbean also delayed the inaugural sailing of its Odyssey of the Seas cruise ship after eight crew members tested positive last month for Covid-19.
Disney delayed a test sailing this week after inconsistent Covid-19 test results. Also this week, Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line pushed back its restart after an onboard crew member tested positive for Covid-19.
Wait and see what happens when the delta variant hits. The Democrats are salivating for it.
Why don’t all the cruise lines get together and offer, HCQ along with Zinc and a Z-pack along with Ivermectin as a treatment for anyone that wants it while on the cruise...
Just a thought.
How is a vaccinated person affected by an unvaccinated person? Or vise-versa?
“Why don’t all the cruise lines get together and offer, HCQ along with Zinc and a Z-pack along with Ivermectin as a treatment for anyone that wants it while on the cruise...”
Agreed. My body, my choice.
Cruise ships are homes to serial killers. Don’t ever go on a cruise. There is probably a serial killer on board. Think about it.
How is a vaccinated person affected by an unvaccinated person? Or vise-versa?Too much logic for the 24/7 Hunter Biden crowd to comprehend.
Nice. So let's see...
Our leaders would have us believe that the risk of getting COVID is reduced by the shot. If that worked perfectly, then people who got the shot are at no risk.
That means that people who didn't get the shot are the only ones at risk. In that case, it makes sense that the cruises want them to have insurance to mitigate their own risk. (I wonder if it's legal that they mandate insurance for a subset of the passengers).
How about you just stop trying to act like a doctor prescribing what you read on the Internet? That’s just retarded. It is even more retarded to think a cruise line can just offer drugs like that.
The article talks about travel insurance. Most people get travel insurance. If you have to get airlifted because of a heart attack, etc, it’s a huge bill.
https://www.allianztravelinsurance.com/
how about you wear a bigger pair of panties because the ones you have on now are restricting the blood flow to your brain....
My wife got sick one time on a cruise and went to the infirmary, they dispense drugs all the time onboard a ship, generic drugs like HCQ and Ivermectin would not be an issue, considering both drugs are sold OTC in many countries.....
Some body didn’t get their coffee this morning.
“Some body didn’t get their coffee this morning.”
Somebody’s tired of reading idiotic statements by idiot kids who think because they read something on the Internet it must be true.
You’re throwing insults and getting angry on a internet message board with someone you don’t know a thing about and have never met and yet somehow I’m the one being childish....
All that anger and frustration can be detrimental to your health, anger management counseling would be helpful for you, think about it.
Good question.
And I may have the answer between 2-3 PM today when I am scheduled to discuss this with some medical people.
Last week I was told I couldn't do something because I was not vaccinated, but yesterday I got a phone call with the possibility of a change, or some new information.
I will keep you posted when I get home late this afternoon. -Tom
Hey! STOP BEING LOGICAL! That is not allowed on this site!
“How about you just stop trying to act like a doctor prescribing what you read on the Internet?”
And how is this difference than what you are doing?
If you don’t know, think harder.
A Covid outbreak on a cruise ship could be a huge inconvenience or ruin the experience, even if you yourself were protected. It could result in increased restrictions on the ship and being banned from foreign ports.
I'm not planning a cruise but if I was I'd want the other passengers to be vaccinated.
Plus, the vaccines aren't perfect and given the demographics of many cruises even some vaccinated passengers could be at risk.
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