Appeals court reinstates COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal workers

April 8 (UPI) -- A federal appeals court upheld President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal workers.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling reversed a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas that had blocked the Biden administration from enforcing the mandate.

In its decision, the appeals court said, "the plaintiffs' claim for preliminary injunctive relief fails because they have not shown a substantial likelihood of success on the merits."

The decision also said that the U.S. District Court broke with every other court to consider the issue and said the case should be dismissed.

Biden issued the executive order mandating vaccines for federal workers Sept. 9, 2021.

He said in that order, "I have determined that to promote the health and safety of the Federal workforce and the efficiency of the civil service, it is necessary to require COVID-19 vaccination for all Federal employees, subject to such exceptions as required by law."

The U.S. District Court temporarily blocked the vaccine mandate order in January.

Judge Jeffrey Brown, appointed by former President Donald Trump, said in that ruling "The court does not decide today the ultimate issue of whether the federal worker mandate is lawful."