US appeals court will not block order barring Biden federal staff vaccine mandate

A US appeals court panel on Wednesday declined to block a lower court ruling that President Joe Biden could not require federal employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. By a 2-1 vote, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals declined to stay the lower-court injunction. Judge Stephen A. Higginson dissented noting a dozen district courts rejected requests to block the vaccine rule while a single district judge issued an injunction. "The only court that can now provide timely relief is the Supreme Court," Higginson wrote. Biden had issued an order requiring about 3.5m government workers to get vaccinated by Nov. 22, barring a religious or medical accommodation, or face discipline or firing. The court ordered an expedited briefing schedule with court papers due by March 23. Higginson said the public interest is not served by a US judge "lacking public health expertise and made unaccountable through life tenure, telling the President of the United States, in his capacity as CEO of the federal workforce, that he cannot take the same lifesaving workplace safety measures" as CEOs of companies like United Airlines or Tyson Foods that have imposed vaccine requirements.<br/>