The top U.S. official responsible for public health oversight on cruise ships has announced his retirement, according to an internal announcement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) obtained by STAT.
Luis Rodríguez, who has been part of the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) since 2010 and served as its chief since 2023, will retire after 14 years of service. The announcement was made internally at the CDC on Wednesday.
The VSP is a key CDC program that monitors and regulates public health standards on cruise ships operating in U.S. waters. Rodríguez played a pivotal role during the COVID-19 pandemic, when cruise ships became hotspots for outbreaks, leading to widespread disruptions and public health interventions.
Under Rodríguez’s leadership, the VSP implemented rigorous sanitation and health protocols to mitigate disease transmission on board. His retirement marks the end of an era for the program, which has been instrumental in shaping cruise industry safety standards for over three decades.
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