Florida has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. federal government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, demanding cruises be allowed to begin sailing again from Florida’s ports.

Major cruise lines say they will test all passengers and crew for COVID-19 prior to boarding as part of their plan for resuming sailing in the Americas. The association’s safety plan will now go to the CDC, which will consider it as the agency decides whether to lift the no-sail order. The safety plan requires testing of passengers and crew, but doesn’t specify the types of coronavirus tests that companies must use, CLIA Chairman Adam Goldstein said. The plan permits limited shore excursions and requires passengers to wear masks and stay apart from other people during those excursions. The plan also requires ships to increase the amount of fresh air in their ventilation systems and use advanced filtration methods where feasible.

In August News 6 covered the stories of people who had their cruises cancelled due to COVID-19 months ago but were still fighting for refunds. Even though cruises were cancelled through no fault of passengers, many have been denied refunds, based on the cruise lines policy. He says he had tried through Princess Cruise Lines, Florida’s Attorney General, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and the Better Business Bureau. There are a couple of takeaways:The cruise line industry is inundated with cancelled cruises and people trying to get refunds. Every cruise line’s refund policy is different.

Numerous people who had cruises canceled due to COVID-19 are still fighting for refunds. Travelers paid thousands of dollars for the cruises but have waited months for refunds and are still waiting. They booked a seven-day Hawaiian cruise for four people through Norwegian Cruise Line for nearly $12,000, according to her confirmation. Because Misany had rescheduled the original cruise, she was now only eligible for future cruise credits, according to an email from the cruise line. The future cruise credit can include a 25-50 percent increase of what the customer paid, depending on the departure date, the statement read.

American cruise lines will suspend ocean cruises until at least the end of October as coronavirus cases continue to pop up in the industry. A Norwegian cruise ship line halted all trips and apologized Monday for procedural errors after a coronavirus outbreak on one ship infected at least five passengers and 36 crew. On Wednesday, the Cruise Lines International Association, which represents cruise lines around the world, announced cruise lines that operate in the U.S. would suspend ocean cruises until at least Oct. 31. CLIA cruise line members will continue to monitor the situation with the understanding that we will revisit a possible further extension on or before 30 September 2020. More than 710 people fell ill aboard Carnival's Diamond Princess cruise ship while it was quarantined off Japan and 13 people died.