TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke from the state's capitol Monday afternoon
He was joined by Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, Senate President Wilton Simpson and House Speaker Chris Sprowls.
Last week, DeSantis held a roundtable in Port Canaveral focused on getting cruise ships sailing in and out of Florida ports again. Cruise line leaders and other businesses spoke at the roundtable, saying they were ready to get back to work.
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DeSantis said he doesn't understand why other types of travel are allowed but not cruising. He said the nation is better off now than it was at the start of the pandemic and called the CDC’s decision not to lift the order “poor leadership.”
He said he feels there is no sense of urgency to get people back to work from the federal government.
“This is a bureaucracy that can’t get its ducks in a row,” DeSantis said.
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Before cruises can welcome back any customers in the U.S., companies will need to implement COVID-19 safety measures, establish lab capacity to be able to test all crew members and future passengers, and participate in a mock voyage.
According to the CDC's order, the simulated voyages will be used to test ships' ability to mitigate COVID-19 risk onboard. Volunteers for those voyages will have to be older than 18 years old and can't be considered high-risk for COVID-19.