A federal judge stopped the COVID-19 vaccination mandate imposed by the administration of President Joe Biden

A federal judge stopped the COVID-19 vaccination mandate imposed by the administration of President Joe Biden , which would have required thousands of health workers in 10 states to receive their first dose next week.

US District Judge Matthew Schelp issued a 32-page preliminary injunction calling the requirement a “policy mandate that alters federalism and pushes boundaries.”

Schelp, appointed by Donald Trump, said in his ruling that the states that sued the administration “were likely to succeed” in arguing that Congress had not given the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services the authority to create the mandate.

US District Judge Matthew Schelp

He also said the mandate could put facilities in “a bind” without adequate staff to provide services, particularly in rural areas.

The vaccination mandate would have affected more than 17 million workers in approximately 76,000 health care centers and home health care providers. 

Under the requirement, announced on November 4, those affected would have to receive their first dose of a vaccine before December 6 and the second before January 4.

An earlier ruling against the Biden administration temporarily blocked a rule under which private companies with more than 100 employees require workers to be vaccinated or tested weekly.

The court order affects the states behind the lawsuit: Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming. 

It is worth mentioning that all states have Republican attorneys general or governors. 

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