Judge blocks President Biden’s federal vaccine mandate in 10 states

In an unexpected move, a federal judge in Missouri on Monday issued an order that blocks President Joe Biden’s national vaccine mandate for health care workers in 10 states.

The order was handed down by U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp, who ruled the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid didn’t have the authority to issue the order, which affected more than 17 million U.S. health care workers, court documents reveal. The states in which the order has been temporarily lifted include Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming, per Schelp’s ruling.

Schelp’s decision comes one week ahead of the December 6th deadline for health care workers in about 76,000 U.S. facilities to get their first doses of vaccine.

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