Appeals court extends block on Biden’s vaccine mandate for employers

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana -- A federal appeals court late Friday extended the block on a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for companies.

The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to lift its emergency stay on enforcement of President Joe Biden's vaccine requirement for businesses with 100 employees or more.

Lawyers for the U.S. Justice and Labor departments had filed a response this week in which they said stopping the mandate from taking effect will only prolong the Covid-19 pandemic and would “cost dozens or even hundreds of lives per day.”

But the appeals court rejected that argument Friday. Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt wrote that the stay “is firmly in the public interest.”

“From economic uncertainty to workplace strife, the mere specter of the Mandate has contributed to untold economic upheaval in recent months,” Engelhardt wrote.

At least 27 states have filed legal challenges in at least six federal appeals courts after the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its rules on Nov. 4. The federal government said in its court filings that the cases should be consolidated and that one of the circuit courts where a legal challenge has been filed should be chosen at random on Nov. 16 to hear it.

Administration lawyers said there is no reason to keep the vaccine mandate on hold while the court where the cases ultimately land remains undetermined.

The White House has set a Jan. 4 deadline for workers to be vaccinated or face weekly tests and a mask requirement.