Name: Scott, Rubio file federal cruise ship act to remove CDC order, allow sailing again
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Scott, Rubio file federal cruise ship act to remove CDC order, allow sailing again

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AdvertisementBy Orlando SentinelApr 14, 2021 at 9:12 amThe U.S. senators from Florida are leading an effort in Congress to force the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to remove its conditional sail order that has kept cruise lines from sailing from U.S. ports.Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio joined with Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan to introduce the “Careful Resumption Under Improved Safety Enhancements (CRUISE) Act” in the U.S. Senate while a companion bill was filed by Rep. María Elvira Salazar, R-Miami, in the House.Advertisement“Florida is a tourism state with thousands of jobs relying on the success of our ports, cruise lines and maritime industries,” said Scott in a press release. “While many sectors of the economy have been safely operating for months under CDC guidelines, Floridians, and those across the nation that rely on the cruise industry for work, continue to wait for updated guidance from the CDC.”All major cruise lines sailing out of U.S. ports are subject to the CDC’s Framework for Conditional Sailing order issued last October in place of a no-sail order that was enacted in March 2020. The framework outlined requirements cruise lines would need to follow including building up testing infrastructure on board and on shore and running simulated sailings before any line could sail with paying customers again.AdvertisementLast month, Cruise Lines International Association had asked the CDC to remove the conditional sail order entirely by July, but the CDC responded it intended to keep the order, which does not expire until Nov. 1, 2021, in place. It then followed with additional guidance, but not concrete dates for cruise lines to know when they might be able to resume sailing.WeeklyGet away from it all with vacation ideas, trip planning help and money-saving tips. &gt; “The CDC’s refusal to properly address this shutdown is wrong and it’s time to get the cruise lines open safely,” Scott said. “Our bill, the CRUISE Act, says we’re not waiting on the CDC any longer. Cruises can and should resume, and we’re going to do everything we can to bring back our cruise industry safely.”Elected officials in Florida and other cruise-centric states like Alaska have joined the cruise industry seeking for a clearer path from the CDC on how to get business up and running.Cruise lines have begun to sail in markets around the world including Asia, Europe and soon the Caribbean. Royal Caribbean will be sailing from the Bahamas and Bermuda while Norwegian Cruise Line will sail from Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, for instance. A statement from CLIA said the cruise industry sailings have already seen nearly 400,000 passengers but fewer than 50 publicly reported COVID-19 cases.Gov. Ron DeSantis announced late last week the state was heading to court to force the issue. Attorney General Ashley Moody filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration, CDC and U.S. Department of Health &amp; Human Services, seeking for the immediate removal of that order.But the congressional move by Scott and Rubio seeks to legislate the reopening.The CRUISE Act sets July 4 as the deadline for the CDC to remove its existing order, but also forces the CDC to issue recommendations on how to mitigate COVID-19 for passengers and crew, establish an interagency “working group” to develop recommendations on how to resume passenger service by July 4 and ensure that HHS and the CDC retain authority to make and enforce regulations to prevent the spread of any communicable disease on board a cruise ship.“The benefits of cruise operations are integral to the economies of Florida’s port cities,” said Rubio in the press release. “Floridians and many other Americans who are employed by ports, cruise operators, or work in hospitality jobs near cruise terminals face an uncertain future because of the CDC’s unresponsiveness to requests for guidance by stakeholder groups.” Advertisement

AdvertisementBy Orlando SentinelApr 14, 2021 at 9:12 amThe U.S. senators from Florida are leading an effort in Congress to force the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to remove its conditional sail order that has kept cruise lines from sailing from U.S. ports.Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio joined with Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan to introduce the “Careful Resumption Under Improved Safety Enhancements (CRUISE) Act” in the U.S. Senate while a companion bill was filed by Rep. María Elvira Salazar, R-Miami, in the House.Advertisement“Florida is a tourism state with thousands of jobs...

Scott, Rubio file federal cruise ship act to remove CDC order, allow sailing again

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