So far, the cruise industry has had a rough year in terms of illness outbreaks. Norovirus outbreaks have hit eight different cruise ships since the beginning of 2025.
Two of the ships – Princess Cruises’ Coral Princess and Holland America Line’s Rotterdam – have been ravaged twice by the highly contagious virus, which spreads rapidly and can be difficult to eradicate in the close quarters of a cruise ship.
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A new norovirus strain has contributed to the recent uptick in cruise ship outbreaks, and the bad year for vacation illness may soon get even worse thanks to recent federal layoffs.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vessel Sanitation Program, a critical partner for the cruise industry that helps to control illness outbreaks on cruise ships, was decimated by government cuts in early April.
Holland America Line’s Rotterdam has been struck with two norovirus outbreaks so far this year.
Image source: KOEN VAN WEEL/ANP/AFP via Getty Images
Cruise ship inspectors, outbreak response team laid off
A major overhaul of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) laid off all of the Vessel Sanitation Program’s full-time employees while they were in the middle of responding to two cruise ship outbreaks, according to a CBS News report.
Included in the layoffs was the epidemiologist who leads the program’s cruise ship outbreak response. Cruise ship inspectors are off the job too. Only a smaller group of 12 U.S. Public Health Service officers were kept on.
The cuts to the Vessel Sanitation Program are particularly puzzling because inspection work is funded by fees paid by cruise lines, not tax-payer dollars. Cruise lines pay an inspection fee for each ship that’s based on the size of the vessel.
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Under the program, cruise ships are subject to two unannounced inspections each year to help cruise lines ensure that their ships maintain public health standards in several key areas to help passengers and crew members stay healthy at sea. Inspections cover food safety and cleaning practices, medical center procedures, and more.
The program also helps cruise lines by tracking, investigating, and responding to illness outbreaks when they do occur on board. Investigations occur when 3% or more of the ship’s passengers or crew members report being sick with acute gastroenteritis symptoms.
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CDC officials uncertain on how vital program can continue
HHS officials say that the critical program’s work to monitor and assist with gastrointestinal outbreaks will continue under the agency’s dramatic restructuring, but CDC officials have expressed doubts.
“None of the civilian staff are there to support them. So I don’t know how long they will be able to sustain their mission alone without any support,” Erik Svendsen, who was head of the former CDC division that oversaw the Vessel Sanitation Program, told CBS News.
The program was already dealing with a staffing shortage prior to the cuts, an anonymous CDC source said. Filling positions on the team had proved difficult due to the taxing travel schedule that comes with inspecting ships and responding to outbreaks. Training new inspectors takes about six months.
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The recent layoffs left the program with only one epidemiologist, who is still in training, to continue cruise ship outbreak investigations, according to another official who spoke to CBS News.
Although cruise lines will continue to work hard to maintain high public health standards and follow the protocols set by the Vessel Sanitation Program, preventing and controlling illness outbreaks will likely prove more difficult with such limited staff.
If you’re taking a cruise, it’s more important than ever to help do your part to limit the spread of illness on board and be extra vigilant about washing your hands.
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