A federal judge in Florida has voided the mask mandate for airplanes and other public transportation.
The decision Monday by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle in Tampa stated “the mandate exceeded the CDC’s statutory authority.”
The ruling also said the agency improperly failed to justify its decision and did not follow proper rulemaking.
A federal judge in Florida has voided the national mask mandate covering airplanes and other public transportation as exceeding the authority of U.S. health officials.
The mask mandate was recently extended by the Biden administration until May 3. https://t.co/Vfrnx48fq9
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 18, 2022
JUST IN: Federal judge strikes down the CDC's mask mandate for travel on planes and other forms of public transportation https://t.co/ae0x2wu9EE
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) April 18, 2022
The Biden Administration last week expanded the mask mandate for 15 days.
AP reported:
The CDC recently extended the mask mandate, which was set to expire on April 18, until May 3 to allow more time to study the BA.2 omicron subvariant of the coronavirus that is now responsible for the vast majority of cases in the U.S.
The mask requirement for travelers was the target of months of lobbying from the airlines, which sought to kill it. The carriers argued that effective air filters on modern planes make transmission of the virus during a flight highly unlikely. Republicans in Congress also fought to kill the mandate.
Critics have seized on the fact that states have rolled back rules requiring masks in restaurants, stores and other indoor settings, and yet COVID-19 cases have fallen sharply since the omicron variant peaked in mid-January.
Biden's CDC airplane/mass transit mask mandate has been struck down.https://t.co/CgpUBLUJ9x pic.twitter.com/EaSY0JYae9
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) April 18, 2022
Read the complete ruling HERE.
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