PORTLAND, Maine (AP) The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to stop the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for Maine health care workers, setting the stage for another 11th-hour appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
A three-judge panel rejected a request for a preliminary injunction, saying opponents of the mandate were unlikely to succeed. The state is due to begin enforcing the mandate on Oct. 29.
The decision was dated Tuesday, the same day the U.S. Supreme Court declined an emergency request to intervene. But the Supreme Court left open the door for another appeal.
Democratic Gov. Janet Mills praised the decision by the appeals court, saying Wednesday that vaccinations “are the best tool we have to protect the lives and livelihoods of Maine people.”
“This rule protects health care workers, their patients and our health care capacity in the face of this deadly virus. Just as vaccination defeated smallpox and vaccination defeated polio, vaccination is the way to defeat COVID-19,” she said in a statement.
The 1st Circuit decision comes a week after a federal judge in Maine upheld the vaccination mandate. The 1st Circuit rejected an emergency request to intervene Friday but agreed to allow additional arguments.
The Liberty Counsel, which filed the lawsuit in federal court in Maine, claims to represent more than 2,000 health care workers who don’t want to be forced to be vaccinated.
“Maine’s interest in safeguarding its residents is paramount. While we do not diminish the appellants’ liberty of conscience, we cannot find, absent any constitutional or statutory violation, any error in the district court’s conclusion that the rule promotes strong public interests and that an injunction would not serve the public interest,” the 1st Circuit concluded.
Most health care workers have complied but several dozen have opted to quit over the mandate, and Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston already curtailed some admissions because of a shortage of nurses.
State agencies vowed to work with hospitals and nursing homes individually to address issues.
