News item #1: Carnival will require COVID vaccinations for all passengers cruising from Galveston:
Carnival Cruise Line today announced plans to begin cruising from the Port of Galveston on July 3.
Cruises will be open to customers who are fully vaccinated, meaning that they can show proof that they received their final dose of vaccine at least 14 days before the cruise begins.
“The current CDC requirements for cruising with a guest base that is unvaccinated will make it very dificult to deliver the experience our guests expect, especially given the large number of families with younger children who sail with us,” Christine Duffy, president of Carnival, said in a press release. “As a result, our alternative is to operate our ships from the U.S. during the month of July with vaccinated guests.”
The Carnival Vista will begin operations on July 3, followed by the Carnival Breeze on July 15.
On the one hand, that sounds not only eminently sensible – I mean, cruise ships are often called “floating petri dishes”, and I say that as someone who has enjoyed going on a couple of cruises – it’s something that the cruise industry itself may see as existential. Who would want to put themselves in an extremely enclosed space with hundreds if not thousands of possibly virus-shedding people if they didn’t have to? Who would want to work under those conditions? If there’s one activity that scores near the top of the scale on “non-essential services” and “high-risk for COVID spread”, it’s going on a cruise. Who in their right mind would not want to encourage, if not outright mandate, cruise passengers being vaccinated before getting on board?
Hold that thought while we note news items #2, As Carnival requires vaccines for cruisers, Abbott to sign ban on ‘vaccine passports’.
Texas businesses cannot require their customers to prove their COVID-19 vaccine status under a bill soon to be signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
The measure, Senate Bill 968, outlaws so-called “vaccine passports” and prevents businesses from asking consumers to show their vaccine cards to receive services. Abbott had issued a similar executive order in April, though that applied only to state agencies and other organizations that receive public funding.
“I’m signing a law today that prohibits any business operating in Texas from requiring vaccine passports or any vaccine information,” Abbott tweeted Monday. “Texas is open 100 percent without any restrictions or limitations or requirements.”
The Senate approved the measure unanimously in April, and the House passed it by a vote of 146-2 in May. Because it earned two-thirds support in both chambers, the bill will take effect immediately after Abbott signs it.
Any business that does not comply with the law “is not eligible to receive a grant or enter into a contract payable with state funds.” State agencies may also “require compliance … as a condition for a license, permit, or other state authorization necessary for conducting business in this state.”
It should be noted that SB968 is a much larger bill that has to do with disaster preparedness and response – it has sections on things like personal protection equipment contracts, a disease prevention information system, wellness checks for medically fragile individuals, and more – so while it does impose this restriction on “vaccine passports”, it’s very much not just about that.
That said, the answer to my rhetorical question is “Republican governors”. Florida’s top madman Ron DeSantis imposed a similar ban on cruise ships that depart from that state. As the story notes, the cruise industry operates in multiple states and in international waters – the ships themselves fly under various foreign flags. Also, too, the specific term “vaccine passports” is basically meaningless now, no such thing currently exists. But one way or another, we have an irresistible force careening into an immovable object. Something is going to have to give, and unless one side or the other backs down, it will surely be up to the federal courts to sort this out. In the meantime, if you yearn to party on the high seas again, check the fine print on your cruise contracts. The Press and the Trib have more.
UPDATE: One more thing to consider:
.
For all the out of state hot takes: This is performative. The law signed by @GregAbbott_TX says companies with state contracts (very few companies) cannot require customers to prove they’ve been vaccinated. Abbott is just lying when he says vaccine passports are banned #txlege https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1402022555960086531— Scott Braddock (@scottbraddock) 9:27 PM – 07 June 2021
In other words, this is more hot air than anything else. Still likely to be fought out in court, but the stakes may not be as high as you think.
They are trying to have it both ways, for example, that want to say that a business can refuse to bake a wedding cake for a gay wedding, but then say that a business can’t refuse to take someone onto the ship without being vaccinated.
Of course we have to ask, with the ships being full of noro virus and other illnesses, will another illness with a 99.6% survival rate discourage the rich from going a cruise?
ABBOTT & CO. EXCEPTIONALISM
Policymaking Step 1: Let’s look around and see what other jurisdictions are doing.
Policymaking Step 2: Let’s make sure we do the opposite.
Because we are the great State of Texas!
If Europe might be in your near-term plans, see here:
https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/all-details-on-eu-covid-19-passport-revealed-heres-what-you-need-to-know/
The European Union is set to make available its COVID-19 passport for all EU citizens and residents, as well as for specific categories of travellers from third countries, by July 1.
Wolf,
Not exactly. I’d say recent Abbott is looking to see what Ron DeSantis is doing in Florida, which is winning bigly, and copying DeSantis. Abbott has to something after his twin failures of killing Texas businesses and jobs, combined with blacking out Texans and fleecing them.
Look at the cruise ship kerfuffle. The cruise companies told Florida they’d demand vaccine passports to bring their ships back. DeSantis told they to get wrecked, go find some other deepwater port to launch your ships from, Florida isn’t going to allow that shit. The cruise lines relented. THAT is how a real leader operates. Don’t back down, don’t compromise, just say NO to communism and authoritarianism.
For the elusive black folks who actually can access the internet, it’s simply put as “Homie don’t play that.”
Having said all that, I’m chomping at the bit to vote to primary Abbott. Hopefully it’s Huffines.