(TheRedAlertNews.com) – In a landmark legal decision opening the door for future mandatory vaccine-related policies, the Supreme Court invalidated several contradictory lower court rulings related to the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate, which affected federal employees and military personnel.
These decisions were rendered moot in light of recent administrative changes. The original mandate, implemented through an executive order by Joe Biden for federal employees, was rescinded in May. Similarly, the Department of Defense (DOD) eliminated its mandate in January.
In a case originating from the Fifth Circuit, brought by a group called Feds for Medical Freedom, the court had previously upheld a comprehensive preliminary injunction prohibiting the government from enforcing the vaccine mandate. This mandate required civilian federal employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. However, the Biden administration informed the Supreme Court that the appeal of this injunction was rendered irrelevant when Executive Order 14,043 was revoked.
The Fifth Circuit had ruled that the Biden administration lacked authority over “private, irreversible medical decisions made in consultation with private medical professionals outside the federal workplace.” With the Supreme Court’s recent action, these appellate court precedents will not influence future decisions on similar matters.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, appointed by Biden, expressed her disagreement with the majority’s decision in two of the cases. She has been a vocal critic of the legal process known as Munsingwear vacatur, which is used to overturn rulings, and she has frequently dissented from its application. Justice Jackson stated, “In my view, the party seeking vacatur has not established equitable entitlement to that remedy.”
The Supreme Court’s decision to vacate these previous rulings effectively removes them from the legal landscape, thereby shaping the future context in which vaccine mandates and similar public health policies might be evaluated.
