Policy & Value-Based Care

Healthcare Worker Vaccine Mandate Reinstated in 26 States

Dec. 17, 2021

A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled on Dec. 15 that a lower court could only black the mandate in the 14 states that sued and was wrong to impose the injunction nationwide

Janette Wider

According to a Dec. 15 article from NBC News, a federal appeals court revived in 26 U.S. states a COVID-19 mandate issued by President Joe Biden's administration that requires healthcare workers to get vaccinated if they work in facilities that receive federal dollars.

The article states that “In a rare win for Biden's pandemic strategy, a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled that a lower court had the authority to block the mandate in only the 14 states that had sued and was wrong to impose a nationwide injunction.”

Further, “The Biden administration mandate requires that healthcare facilities get staff vaccinated against the coronavirus or lose funding from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which administers the two large government healthcare programs.”

We reported on Dec. 2 that the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana granted a preliminary injunction enjoining the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) from enforcing its COVID-19 vaccine mandate nationwide.

“The administration argued that the mandate will potentially save thousands of lives every month, with COVID-19 cases and deaths expected to spike with the onset of winter and arrival of the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant,” the article continues. “Numerous lawsuits have been filed seeking to block vaccine mandates issued by governments and businesses as public health measures amid a pandemic that has killed more than 800,000 Americans.”

Moreover, “The 5th Circuit ruling said the Biden administration had not made a strong showing that it was likely to prove during the litigation that it has the authority to impose the rule. The panel included Judge Leslie Southwick, appointed by Republican former President George W. Bush, and Judges James Graves and Gregg Costa, both appointed by Democratic former President Barack Obama.”

This rule is one of three Biden administration requirements. The other two are for federal contractors and for companies with more than 100 employees, which are also facing lawsuits.