January 1, Biden Asks Federal Court to Reinstate Workplace Vaccine Mandate

The White House asked a federal court to reinstate President Joe Biden’s workplace vaccine mandate that was put on ice earlier this month as administration officials hope to bolster vaccination numbers heading into winter.

In court papers filed overnight on Tuesday, the Biden administration implored the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit to lift its order blocking the rule, which requires businesses with at least 100 employees to comply with mandatory COVID-19 vaccination or regular testing.

“Delaying this standard would endanger many thousands of people and would likely cost many lives per day,” the filing read. “With the reopening of workplaces and the emergence of the highly transmissible Delta variant, the threat to workers is ongoing and overwhelming.”

Previously, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit issued a temporary stay (or block), calling the mandate “fatally flawed,” and ordered that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) refrain from enforcing it “pending adequate judicial review.”

The move marks the Biden administration’s most significant legal maneuver since the case was transferred to the Cincinnati-based appeals court.

What happens next during this round of legal battles will have heavy implications on the mandate’s future.

“Because the emergency standard can only be in effect for six months, its fate rests mostly on the outcome of this stay motion,” said Sean M. Marotta, a partner at the Hogan Lovells law firm.

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Biden seeks to revive workplace vaccine mandate