CDC to Decide if White House Will Appeal Federal Court’s Mask Mandate Decision

United States President Joe Biden and his administration said they would appeal a recent federal judge’s decision to void the public transportation mask mandate if officials determine facial coverings are still necessary to keep people safe.

According to Reuters.com, the White House revealed it was deferring the decision to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which will conduct a study to decide whether the mandates were still needed.

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If the CDC determines the facial covering protocols are still needed to protect public health, the U.S. Justice Department said it would appeal Monday’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle that the 14-month-old directive was unlawful.

“We will continue to assess the need for a mask requirement in those settings, based on several factors, including the U.S. COVID-19 community levels, risk of circulating and novel variants, and trends in cases and disease severity,” a CDC spokesperson told Reuters.

While the government agency conducts its study, officials said they still strongly recommend travelers on all forms of public transportation—including on planes and in airports—should still wear masks.

The CDC recently extended the nationwide mask requirements for public transportation through May 3, but the decision was voided when Judge Mizelle said the agency “improperly failed to justify its decision and did not follow proper rulemaking.”

In response to the court ruling, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said it would no longer enforce the mask mandate on public transportation.

Last week, the CDC revealed its Travel Health Notice system for international destinations would be overhauled. The new system reserves Level 4 travel health notices for special circumstances, with around 90 countries and territories removed from its ‘Level 4: Do Not Travel’ list.

The U.S. Department of State revealed it would cut back on “Do Not Travel” advisories for international destinations after CDC officials announced the change in how they will assess COVID-19 concerns.