Carnival Cruise Lines announced that it was considering moving voyage departures out of Florida because of a recently-enacted state law banning businesses from requiring proof of coronavirus vaccinations from its employees and guests, CNN reports.

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order last month banning the requirement of so-called “vaccine passports” in the state, claiming that it was an issue of “personal freedom” that shouldn’t have government interference.  DeSantis had previously threatened to sue the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the federal government for an ongoing ban on cruises during the pandemic, saying it irreparably harmed the Florida economy.

The cruise industry, however, views requiring proof of vaccination as a common-sense and necessary precaution for its crews and guests.  Carnival Cruises said they could shift departure points to other states to circumvent the Florida ban.

“At the end of the day, cruise ships have motors, propellers and rudders, and God forbid we can’t operate in the state of Florida for whatever reason, then there are other states that we do operate from, and we can operate from the Caribbean for a ship that otherwise would have gone to Florida,” CEO Frank Del Rio said during the company’s quarterly earnings call, CNN reports.

The CDC provided a detailed plan to restart the cruise industry, requiring 98% of crew and 95% of passengers to provide proof of vaccination before allowing the industry to restart cruises from US ports.

“It is a classic state versus federal government issue,” said Del Rio. “Lawyers believe that federal law applies.”

At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, cruise ships became hotspots for the transmission of the disease.  Last March, Donald Trump questioned whether a cruise ship with hundreds of coronavirus-infected people on it should be allowed to dock at a Florida port, complaining wrongly that by doing so, the numbers of cases in the US would jump.

“I like the numbers being where they are. I don’t need to have the numbers double because of one ship that wasn’t our fault,” Trump said in a Fox News interview.