CDC Fires Team That Performs Cruise Ship Inspections

CBS News reports:

All of the full-time employees in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vessel Sanitation Program are now off the job, multiple officials tell CBS News, gutting the agency’s ability to investigate outbreaks and conduct health inspections on cruise ships.

The steep cuts to the program’s inspectors baffled CDC officials since the small team’s staff is not paid for by taxpayer dollars. Fees from cruise ships companies pay for the program, which is supposed to inspect large vessels at least twice a year.

The epidemiologist tasked with leading the agency’s outbreak response on cruise ships was included in the layoffs, multiple CDC officials said. The cuts come as the U.S. has been battling a record surge of norovirus, largely driven by a new strain of the virus.

Read the full article.

The @CDCgov‘s cruise ship inspectors have been laid off, as well as agency’s head epidemiologist for investigating cruise ship outbreaks

That baffled health officials since this program is paid for by cruise ship fees, not taxpayer dollarshttps://t.co/pWfLA4KsyC

— Alexander Tin (@Alexander_Tin) April 10, 2025

Oh cool, another genius move. Just like when they fired the people in charge of nukes and bird flu… then quietly rehired them. Can’t wait for the ‘CDC rehires cruise ship inspectors after massive outbreak’ headline. Incompetence is practically a feature at this point.

— Emerging EM (@NextGen_EM) April 11, 2025