The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a motion filed by the Biden administration Friday that would transfer the OSHA vaccine mandate case to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The court refused to allow the case to be moved to the circuit court in Washington, D.C., and ruled each side must file their arguments by Dec. 10, despite petitioners’ request.
President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate, which was set to take effect Jan. 4, was temporarily halted by the Fifth Circuit, with the case then moving to the Sixth Circuit to determine whether to maintain the Fifth Circuit’s halt.
The Fifth Circuit ruled that the petitions “give cause to believe there are gravy statutory and constitutional issues with the Mandate.”
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 03: U.S. President Joe Biden answers a reporter’s question after giving remarks on the November jobs report in the State Dining Room of the White House on December 03, 2021, in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The rule would have required employers with 100 or more employees to either mandate the vaccine for all employees or require negative weekly testing and mask-wearing. (RELATED: Manchin Comes Out Against Biden’s Vaccine Mandate For Large Companies)
Biden’s vaccine mandate for healthcare workers has also faced legal troubles, with two judges ruling against the mandate. Missouri-based U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp granted an injunction for the vaccine mandate for healthcare workers in November, ruling there was a detrimental impact of losing qualified healthcare workers due to the mandate. Schelp also said the mandate “is likely an unlawful promulgation of regulations.”
That ruling was later bolstered by a federal judge in Louisiana who issued an injunction against the mandate for healthcare workers that applied to all 50 states on Tuesday.
“In addressing the geographic scope of the preliminary injunction, due to the nationwide scope of the CMS Mandate, a nationwide injunction is necessary due to the need for uniformity,” the court document issued by the U.S. District Court for The Western District of Louisiana said.