Federal Judge Overturns Mask Mandate 

 

On Monday, April 18, U.S. district Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle blocked the agency’s mask mandate on airlines and other forms of public transportation. The 59 page ruling stated that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had exceeded its authority and failed to follow proper rule making procedures. 

In response, numerous U.S. airlines and other transportation hubs promptly dropped their mask mandates. Just a few weeks ago, numerous airline CEO’s wrote to the Biden administration asking that they end the federal mask mandate as it “no longer aligned with the realities  of the current epidemiological environment.” 

This news came as excitement to numerous Americans, who feel like masks should be a personal choice, not a mandate, at this point in the pandemic. In fact, some health officials have even warned that cloth masks do NOT protect in the spread of coronavirus, which is what majority of travelers on public transportation and airplanes wear. 

Although mainstream media is trying to relay that Americans are fearful of not wearing masks, numerous videos have surfaced of flights of passengers cheering and immediately taking their masks off. 

 

Southwest Airlines Flight to Charlotte 

Passengers on JetBlue Airlines Flight

Delta Airlines Flight 

 

How Will the Biden Administration Respond?

 The Biden Administration has made it clear numerous times they support and even keep extending the federal mask mandate. On April 19, the Biden Administration announced that it intends  to appeal the Florida judge’s ruling only if the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention decides that extending the measure is necessary. 

 The federal mask mandate was set to expire on May 3, so the news comes just about two weeks short of the intended expiration. The mandate has been extended four times, with the last extension put in place to monitor any potential increases “in severe virus outcomes as cases rise in parts of the country,” the AP reported. 

 

Will Individual airlines continue to Require Masks?

 The majority of US airlines have ended the mask mandate after the announcement on April 18. Airlines typically follow the protocols pit in place by TSA, so if the mandate isn’t reinstated, they are likely to keep the “no mask necessary policy.”

 

End Mandates- Let The People Decide

 It’s now been over two years since the COVID-19 pandemic has emerged and taken the world by storm. As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to decline, it seems reasonable to let the American people decide how to protect themselves.

 

This story was updated on April 22, check back for more updates as the story unfolds!

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