Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden adjusts his face mask after participating during the second and final presidential debate Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., with President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
At the request of the Centers for Disease Control the U.S. Department of Justice will appeal the ruling that struck down the federal mask requirement on airplanes and other forms of public transportation.
The announcement came late Wednesday, shortly after the CDC issued a statement saying masks were still “necessary for the public health.”
Attorneys for the government filed the appeal in Tampa federal court where earlier this week U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle ruled the CDC had overstepped their authority in enacting the mask mandate.
A number of northeast cities including Philadelphia have brought back masks as cases of a COVID variant mount while several airlines have made them optional.