Biden administration asks US court to dismiss airplane mask case

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Justice Department on Tuesday asked an appeals court panel to dismiss its appeal and vacate an April 2021 ruling that declared unlawful a government order requiring masks on airplanes other transportation modes as moot.

A three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in January heard arguments on the Biden Administration’s appeal of a ruling by a U.S. district court judge in Florida that found the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lacked legal authority to issue a nationwide travel mask mandate to combat COVID-19. The Justice Department said Tuesday in a court filing the issue was moot because of “a fundamental change in public health conditions, as evidenced by the joint resolution of Congress terminating the national emergency.”