Late Wednesday night the Supreme Court announced it will hear emergency oral arguments about the constitutionality of President Joe Biden's broad reaching Wuhan coronavirus vaccination mandates for private sector and government healthcare workers.
In an unexpected move, SCOTUS on Wednesday night scheduled oral arguments for Jan. 7 in a pair of shadow-docket requests involving two Biden vaccine policies: the vax-or-test mandate for large employers, and the vaccine mandate for health care facilities. https://t.co/fqjlHpGkXo
— SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) December 23, 2021
According to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, the Biden administration is confident in their position.
"Especially as the US faces the highly transmissible Omicron variant, it is critical to protect workers with vaccination requirements and testing protocols that are urgently needed," Psaki released in a statement. "At a critical moment for the nation’s health, the OSHA vaccination or testing rule ensures that employers are protecting their employees and the CMS health care vaccination requirement ensures that providers are protecting their patients. We are confident in the legal authority for both policies and DOJ will vigorously defend both at the Supreme Court."
Oral arguments will be heard in front of the full court on January 7, 2022. Over the past two months, a number of federal judges halted the enforcement and implementation of the mandate. The Sixth Circuit recently lifted the stays, setting up a Supreme Court showdown.
Meanwhile, the Senate voted two weeks ago to strike down Biden's vaccine mandate for private companies with more than 100 employees. It is unclear whether the House will take a vote on the legislation.
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