Federal lawyers tells court vaccine rule should remain while cases play out in courts

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration on Monday argued that the federal government had all the power it needed to require large employers to mandate vaccination of their workers against the Covid-19 virus — or to require those who refuse the shots to wear masks and submit to weekly testing.

In a 28-page filing before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which temporarily blocked the mandate with a nationwide stay last week, the Justice Department argued that the rule was necessary to protect workers from the pandemic and was well grounded in law.

Keeping the mandate from coming into effect “would likely cost dozens or even hundreds of lives per day, in addition to large numbers of hospitalizations, other serious health effects, and tremendous costs,” the Justice Department said in its filing. “That is a confluence of harms of the highest order.”

A coalition of plaintiffs — including several employers, and Republican-controlled states — have challenged the mandate in court. Their lawsuit argued that the mandate is an unlawful overreach that exceeds the authority Congress has legitimately delegated to OSHA.

 ...

A Federal District Court judge in the District of Columbia separately declined on Monday to block the rule, and the issue is very likely to end up before the Supreme Court.

Part of the Justice Department’s filing pointed to the process of randomly selecting an appeals court to consolidate the cases from across the country — and the fact that the deadlines for the mandate have not yet kicked in — as a reason for the Fifth Circuit to restrain itself. But other portions of the filing served as a preview of the administration’s broader arguments. ...