Cruise Line Wins Vaccine Passport Injunction
After a lengthy legal battle, Norwegian Cruie Line Holdings won its first battle in court against the state of Florida, allowing the cruise line to move forward with its vaccine passport requirement.
Image Credit: Norwegian Cruise Line
United States District Judge Kathleen M. Williams issued the injuction yesterday. The ruling gives Norwegian the ability to require passengers provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19 prior to sailing. Previously, laws in the state of Florida prohibited such regulations.
Image Credit: ABC
According to the cruise line, the judge cited a need to gain consumer confidence. She also noted the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant as factors in her decision.
“Businesses face unprecedented challenges, including the understandably difficult tasks of restoring consumer confidence and minimizing the spread of COVID-19. In addition, the nation is now threatened by new virus variants that are more transmissible than the initial strain,” Williams said in the filing.
Image Credit: Norwegian Cruise Line
For their part, Norwegian argued that the company faced extraordinary financial hardships and issues with their reputation without the vaccine passports.
DeSantis Issues Vaccine Passport Response
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis quickly issued a statement regarding his opposing stance on the issue. DeSantis previously signed the Florida law barring such vaccine passports.
Image Credit: AP Photo/Brynn Anderson
“A prohibition on vaccine passports does not even implicate, let alone violate, anyone’s speech rights, and it furthers the substantial, local interest of preventing discrimination among customers based on private health information,” DeSantis said yesterday according to PBS.
Image Credit: Disney Cruise Line
With an appeal clearly on the horizon, it is unclear how this will change cruising requirements for Norwegian passengers. So far, Norwegian is the first to challenge the Florida law. Instead of Florida, their first sailing since early 2020 departed from Seattle over the weekend en route to Alaska. The state of Washington does not have laws banning vaccine requirements.
DCL Vaccine Suggestions
Disney Cruise Line wished passengers “Bon Voyage” from Port Canaveral yesterday, as Disney Dream finally returned to the seas. As of now, DCL “strongly encourages” guests to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to sailing.
Photo: Disney Cruise Line
“Guests who are fully vaccinated may choose to provide proof of vaccination in order to be exempt from pre-trip and Embarkation Day testing requirements (unless arriving from outside the United States) and travel insurance requirements,” according to the cruise line.
Image Credit: Disney
For guests that choose not to be vaccinated or who cannot be vaccinated, proof of negative test taken within 5 days to 24 hours of sail must be provided. These guests must also undergo a rapid PCR COVID-19 test prior to Embarkation.
