Missouri, et al. v. Joseph R. Biden, Jr., President of the United States, et al.

On November 5, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its vaccine mandate for workers in most federally funded healthcare facilities. 86 Fed. Reg. 61,555-61,627 (“Mandate”). On January 13, 2022, this Court stayed the district court’s preliminary injunction against the Mandate, Biden v. Missouri, 142 S. Ct. 647 (2022) (per curiam), and thus necessarily determined that there is “a reasonable probability that four Justices will consider the issue sufficiently meritorious to grant certiorari.” Hollingsworth v. Perry, 558 U.S. 183, 190 (2010). Indeed, four Justices in Missouri noted that “there is no real dispute that this case merits our review.” Missouri, 142 S. Ct. at 655 (Thomas, J., dissenting). After the agency imposed a 90-day delay, the Mandate went into full effect on April 15, 2022, and the Petitioner States are now experiencing its devastating consequences—especially on their small, rural, and community-based healthcare systems. The Questions Presented are:

1. Whether the Mandate violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) because it is arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful?

2. Whether the Mandate is unconstitutional under the Spending Clause, the anti-commandeering doctrine, and the Tenth Amendment?

3. Whether the Mandate violates the APA because it was issued without notice and comment?

4. Whether the Mandate exceeds CMS’s statutory authority?