,,ii #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #aaje ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,april #ac1 #bjba ,mr4 ,sullivan 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,scott of ,florida1 and ,mr4 ,rubio7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to provide ,,covid-#ai mitigation instructions for cruise ships1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,careful ,resumption ,under ,improved ,safety ,enhancements ,act or the ,,cruise ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,on ,march #ad1 #bjbj1 in response to the ,,covid-#ai pandemic1 the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention 7,,cdc7 issued the ,no ,sail ,order and ,suspension of ,further ,embarkation which prohibited all cruise ships with capacity to carry #bej or more individuals from embarking passengers in the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,prior to the ,,covid-#ai pandemic1 the cruise industry supported nearly #dej1jjj ,american jobs and contributed over #ee1ejj1jjj1jjj to the ,united ,states economy annually4 ,more than #cjj1jjj jobs have been lost in the ,united ,states due to the suspension of cruises4 ,the majority of the individuals impacted are independent business owners or individuals employed by small- to medium-sized businesses1 including travel agents1 taxi drivers1 port employees1 baggage handlers1 and longshore workers1 as well as airline1 hotel1 and restaurant employees4 7#c7 ,on ,october #cj1 #bjbj1 the ,,cdc issued the ,framework for ,conditional ,sailing ,order for cruise ships that laid out a #d-phase approach for the resumption of cruise activity4 ,at that time1 the ,,cdc released technical instructions for only the first phase of this conditional sailing order4 ,on ,april #b1 #bjba1 more than #e months later1 ,,cdc released the technical instructions for half of the second phase4 ,without the complete technical instructions for all #d phases of this framework1 no large cruise ships are able to resume operations in the ,united ,states under the ,,cdc's conditional sailing order4 7#d7 ,the cruise industry is the only segment of the ,united ,states economy that is completely prohibited from operations by the ,,cdc due to ,,covid-#ai4 ,for every other sector of the economy1 ,,cdc provides recommendations for how to mitigate the spread of ,,covid-#ai without issuing orders to prohibit operations4 7#e7 ,since ,july #bjbj1 cruising has continued in ,asia1 ,europe1 and the ,south ,pacific with nearly #djj1jjj passengers sailing with health protocols to mitigate the spread of ,,covid-#ai4 7#f7 ,the increasing availability of vaccines provides a path to the resumption of pre-pandemic activities4 ,on ,march #b1 #bjba1 ,president ,biden stated3 ,we're now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in ,america by the end of ,may4 ''' ,the more people who get vaccinated1 the faster we're going to overcome this virus and get back to our loved ones1 get our economy back on track1 and start to move back to normal44 7#g7 ,as of ,march #aa1 #bjba1 #fe percent of people over the age of #fe and more than #gj percent of people over the age of #ge in the ,united ,states were fully vaccinated against ,,covid-#ai1 leading ,president ,biden to state3 ,all adult ,americans will be eligible to get a vaccine no later than ,may #a4 ''' ,after this long1 hard year1 that will make this ,independence ,day something truly special1 where we not only mark our independence as a nation but we begin to mark our independence from this virus44 #c4 ,,covid-#ai mitigation guidance for cruise ships 7a7 ,in general ,not later than the earlier of #cj days after the date of enactment of this ,act or ,june #a1 #bjba1 the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services 7referred to in this ,act as the ,secretary71 acting through the ,director of the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention 7referred to in this ,act as the ,director7 and in consultation with the interagency working group established under subsection 7c71 shall issue recommendations for how to mitigate the risks of ,,covid-#ai introduction1 transmission1 and spread among passengers and crew onboard cruise ships and ashore to communities4 ,the ,secretary may later update or modify such recommendations as necessary to mitigate such risks4 7b7 ,applicability ,the recommendations issued under subsection 7a7 shall be applicable to all cruise ships subject to the order entitled ,no ,sail ,order and ,suspension of ,further ,embarkation1 issued by the ,director on ,march #bd1 #bjbj 7#he ,fed4 ,reg4 #affbh71 or any modification to1 or extension of1 such order4 7c7 ,working group 7#a7 ,establishment ,there is hereby established an interagency working group1 for purposes of developing1 not later than #cj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the recommendations described in subsection 7a71 in order to facilitate the resumption of passenger cruise ship operations in the ,united ,states not later than ,july #d1 #bjba4 7#b7 ,members ,the interagency working group shall consist of-- 7,a7 the ,secretary 7or designee7 serving as ,chair2 7,b7 the ,secretaries 7or designees7 of ,transportation1 of ,homeland ,security1 and of ,commerce2 and 7,c7 industry stakeholders appointed by the ,secretary4 7#c7 ,scope of recommendations ,in developing the recommendations described in subsection 7a71 the interagency working group shall consider public health safety needs2 risk mitigation strategies and health protocols for passengers and crew that are consistent with1 and not substantially more burdensome than1 the guidance applied by the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention to other business sectors and travel-related industries2 and overall economic impacts1 costs1 and benefits of the recommendations4 #d4 ,resumption of cruise ship operations ,not later than ,july #d1 #bjba1 the ,secretary shall revoke the order entitled ,framework for ,conditional ,sailing and ,initial ,phase ,,covid-#ai ,testing ,requirements for ,protection of ,crew1 issued by the ,director on ,november #d1 #bjbj 7#he ,fed4 ,reg4 #gjaec71 under the authority of sections #cfa and #cfe of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bfd2 #bfh71 and any other order or regulation that prohibits the operation of all cruise ships in ,united ,states waters1 requires such ships to obtain approval from the ,director prior to operating1 or otherwise acts as a de facto prohibition for cruise ship operations in the ,united ,states4 #e4 ,rules of construction ,nothing in this ,act shall limit the authority of the ,secretary to make and enforce such regulations that1 in the judgment of the ,secretary1 are necessary to prevent the introduction1 transmission1 or spread of communicable diseases on any individual cruise ship presenting a public health threat by reason of the existence of any communicable disease4