US Judge blocks Biden's federal vaccine mandate, rules it's 'beyond President's authority'

A federal judge in Missouri has issued an injunction against the United States' President Joe Biden administration's COVID-19 vaccination mandate for government contractors in 10 states. A preliminary injunction against the order was upheld by US Magistrate Judge David Noce of the Eastern District of Missouri, which was challenged by a state coalition lead by Missouri.

Biden's administration has attempted to encourage workplace vaccinations through a series of administrative measures that affect government employees, Medicare and Medicaid providers, and firms with more than 100 employees. All of them are up against legal obstacles.

The obligation for government contractors originates from Biden's executive order from September, which mandated that federal contractors follow workplace safety rules developed by a federal task force. With limited medical or religious exceptions, the task committee released guidelines for new, renewed, or extended contracts to contain a clause mandating employees to be completely vaccinated by January 18, with limited medical or religious exceptions. 

The new preliminary order prevents the contractors' vaccine mandate from being enforced in the 10 states that sued together. It comes after a federal judge in Georgia ordered a countrywide injunction earlier this month. Initially, a Kentucky judge limited the requirement's application to Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. On December 7, a Georgia judge sitting over a second complaint issued a countrywide injunction.

Vaccine requirement exceeds President's legal authority to set purchase restrictions: Judge Noce

The most recent injunction, issued by US Magistrate Judge David Noce in another complaint, applies in Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The vaccine demand, according to Noce, likely exceeds the president's legal authority to set purchase restrictions. According to him, federal standards for contractors often involve employee rights, compensation, and nondiscrimination policies.

"The vaccine mandate would reach beyond the workplace and into the realm of public health. The Court concludes that plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the issue of whether the mandate exceeds the scope of the power granted to the President under federal law," Noce remarked, according to AP.

Other vaccine mandates proposed by Biden are in varying levels of implementation. On Friday, a three-judge panel of the 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals overturned an injunction against a Biden's vaccine mandate requiring firms with more than 100 employees to have their staff vaccinated or tested monthly and wear masks. However, Republican attorneys general, business associations, and a number of conservative organisations soon filed an appeal with the United States Supreme Court.

Preliminary injunctions have put a stop to a separate demand that health personnel be vaccinated against COVID-19. Joe Biden's administration, on the other hand, has requested the Supreme Court to overturn the lower court rulings.

(With inputs from agencies)

Image: AP