Florida sues USA, CDC to get people back on cruise ships

Enlarge / Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks to the media about the cruise industry during a press conference at PortMiami on April 8, 2021 in Miami, Florida. (credit: Getty | Joe Raedle)

The state of Florida has filed a lawsuit against the United States of America and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, claiming that the health agency’s guidance for the cruise industry is “arbitrary and capricious” and that it should be immediately dubbed “unlawful.”

“Today, Florida is fighting back,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said in a news conference at Miami’s seaport Thursday, in which he announced the lawsuit. “We don’t believe the federal government has the right to mothball a major industry for over a year based on very little evidence and very little data. And I think we have a good chance for success.”

The lawsuit comes just days after the CDC released updates to its Conditional Sailing Order (CSO), which the cruise industry called “unduly burdensome” and “largely unworkable.”