Cruise ships should be held to the same standard as Disneyland, Doctor’s offices, etc., who have to follow the ADA, and be required to have interpreters (whether live on board or through Video Remote Interpreting and wireless systems) whenever a passenger is deaf or hard of hearing and uses sign language. Captioning should be available for passengers who are hard of hearing or deaf and prefer that modality. Many of the rote lectures and safety warnings can be captioned and signed and given to the passenger to watch on handheld DVD players. At a bare minimum, critical amenities such as the clinic need to be sure to have accessible communication.
Michela Steele