I don't think anyone is implying that an HA cabin should be freed up on a sold out ship. The issue is that the ship may not be sold out, but the HA cabins may be sold--to people who don't need them! If there is an empty cabin on the ship, the person not needing it should be moved to a "regular" cabin, thus allowing the person needing it to cruise. However....due to privacy issues and sneaky people,
DCL doesn't know that the person who reserved this cabin doesn't need it.
DCL goes far above the necessity to provide for mobility impaired (and other sort of impairments) in guests. Honestly, there is no reason that someone in a wheelchair or
ECV should be able to jump the line and board the first bus that pulls up while people who have been waiting for 30 minutes continue to wait. Why can't they just join the line and get on the bus when they have waited their turn like everyone else? And there is a huge difference between someone who needs mobility (or other) assistance on a daily basis vs. someone who isn't able to walk the long distances involved in the parks.
The funny thing is that the people I know who NEED assistance are the very ones that don't want to inconvenience anyone else. Those with lesser "needs" seem to like the perks. Don't get me started on the woman at church who has her mother's HA parking tag--mom died 3 years ago, the there are several years remaining till the tag expires and this lady continues to use it!
On the other hand, we need to remember that not all needs are readily visible. A person may need the grab bars by a shower or toilet for balance/weakness issues but not need a wheelchair routinely. Heart or lung problems may impair walking just as much as leg issues. Perhaps the best we can ask is that those who don't need the cabins on the ship remember that they there FIRST for people who need them and only at the last minute for people who just want a big room.
