On Nov. 30, a federal district court in Louisiana issued a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking enforcement of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) interim final rule requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for workers in most health care settings that receive Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement.
On Dec. 1, the government filed a notice of appeal of this decision with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The district court denied the government’s request to stay its order pending the resolution of this appeal. The government has now requested that the Fifth Circuit issue such a stay; a ruling on this latest request is expected within a matter of days.
Previously, a Missouri district court issued a preliminary injunction that applied to 10 states – the Nov. 30 ruling applies for the remaining 40 states. The federal government has appealed the ruling in the Missouri case.
California’s state public health order requiring vaccination for health care workers remains in place.