Cruise Line Sues Florida Surgeon General Over ‘Vaccine-Passport’ Ban

The Miami-based company filed the lawsuit Tuesday against Scott Rivkees, the state surgeon general, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Norwegian asked the court to block and declare unlawful the enforcement of the ban on requiring proof of vaccination. Norwegian only sued Dr. Rivkees because he is the state official who has authority to enforce the ban, according to the company’s complaint.

The company also argued that restricting the flow of information—in this case, vaccine documentation—affects freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in May said, “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.”

The Florida Department of Health didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Norwegian is set to offer cruises to the Caribbean starting Aug. 15 from Florida, a cruise hub that in 2019 accounted for about 60% of cruise embarkations from the U.S., according to the industry group Cruise Lines International Association. The company also plans to resume Alaska sailings beginning Aug. 7, marking its first U.S. restart. Alaska doesn’t have restrictions on requiring vaccination proof like Florida does.

Florida’s ban, made into law in May, is in place as cruise operators have been working to satisfy guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Committing to a 95% vaccination rate for crew and passengers is one way for cruise operators to get the green light from the agency, the CDC said. In its complaint, Norwegian said the potential spread of the highly contagious Delta variant is another driver of its decision to require full Covid-19 vaccinations.

A federal judge sided with Florida last month in the state’s lawsuit over the federal government’s cruise-industry restrictions. The judge granted the state’s request for a preliminary injunction barring the CDC from enforcing a conditional-sailing order the agency put in place in October 2020. The CDC asked the district court to stay the preliminary injunction, a motion the court later denied. The agency also asked an appeals court to put the ruling on hold.

Norwegian Chief Executive Frank Del Rio, in his declaration filed in court, said the company won’t be able to sail in Florida as planned if it must comply with the proof-of-vaccine ban. The cancellation of itineraries for the Norwegian Gem ship, which will depart from Miami, could result in about $4 million in lost revenue per seven-day cruise, Mr. Del Rio said.

“If we do not abandon our Florida operations entirely, then NCLH will have to revise its operations in ways that are costlier, less safe, less appealing for our passenger base, less likely to meet our commitments to [the] CDC, and are beneath our brand and the quality of experience passengers have come to expect from NCLH,” Mr. Del Rio said of the scenario in which the company must comply with the Florida law.

Royal Caribbean Group, Norwegian’s competitor, has shifted from requiring to recommending vaccinations to abide by the Florida law. But unvaccinated people would be subject to additional costs and restrictions, it said. One of its lines is requiring unvaccinated guests 12 and older departing from Florida to buy travel insurance. Carnival Cruise Line is also requiring travel insurance for unvaccinated guests on cruises leaving from Florida starting July 31.

Write to Dave Sebastian at [email protected]