Tom Hals

(Reuters] – On Monday, a federal judge blocked in 10 States a Biden administration vaccination requirement. It was found that the agency which issued the rule mandating healthcare workers be vaccinated for the coronavirus had likely overstepped its boundaries.

U.S. district judge Matthew Schelp, St. Louis, ruled against the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Social Services (CMS), from enforcing the vaccine mandate for healthcare workers. The court will then hear the legal challenges made by the states.

This ruling marks the second setback in the Biden Administration’s efforts to increase vaccine use to stop the COVID-19 epidemic. The New Orleans federal appeals court earlier this month blocked the broad workplace mandate that requires all businesses of at least 100 employees get their employees tested or vaccinated weekly.

Early November saw the filing of a lawsuit by Republican state attorneys general against the administration over the CMS rule. The suit sought to block it because it was likely to worsen the healthcare staffing crisis.

Schelp stated that CMS has significantly underestimated the impact of its mandate on healthcare facilities’ ability to deliver proper care.

Schelp’s ruling was applied to the following states, Missouri, Nebraska Arkansas Kansas Iowa Wyoming Alaska South Dakota North Dakota New Hampshire

CMS released the interim final rule, which it stated covers more than 10,000,000 people. It applies to about 76,000 healthcare providers (hospitals, dialysis centers and nursing homes).

Failure to follow the mandate can result in providers losing access to Medicare or Medicaid. Medicare covers people aged 65 or older, as well as the disabled. Medicaid is for the poor.