VIDEO: Alaska sues the CDC over cruise ban
Alaska joins Florida in a lawsuit against the CDC to restart the domestic cruise industry in time for summer.
By Michael McGrady, Maritime Direct Americas & Pacific Correspondent
JUNEAU — Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has announced that his administration is joining the administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in suing the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a bid to permit the cruise industry to resume in time for the peak season.
“Alaska has urged the CDC to withdraw or amend its Conditional Sailing Order to allow for a cruise season in Alaska,” Dunleavy said in a press statement. “The cruise industry is vital to the economic health of Alaska. Alaska has already suffered an economic loss of $3 billion due to the cancellation of the 2020 cruise ship season and faces another (unnecessary) economic loss in 2021.”
Treg Taylor, the Alaska Attorney General, said that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “simply does not have the authority to arbitrarily shut down an entire industry.”
“Through this lawsuit, Alaska seeks to protect its citizens and its interests by forcing the CDC to act within the limited authority Congress granted it,” Taylor said in the same press statement via coverage by The Maritime Executive.
