HARRISBURG, Pa. (EYT) — On Wednesday, Commonwealth Court Judge Christine Cannon ruled in favor of parents who filed a lawsuit over the school mask mandate in Pennsylvania.
Judge Cannon’s decision to overturn the mandate was almost immediately put on hold when Health Department lawyers filed an appeal to the state Supreme Court just a few hours later.
The order from Judge Cannon states Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam did not have the authority to issue a new regulation requiring masks, and declares that the mask order is void and unenforceable.
The court documents indicate the Department of Health argued that the state’s Disease Prevention and Control Law allowed Beam to mandate masks.
However, the judge stated the Disease Control Law does not provide the Acting Secretary with the authority to impose the mask mandate’s “non-isolation, non-quarantine control measure” of requiring all individuals to wear masks or face coverings inside schools in Pennsylvania.
The decision and appeal come just days after Gov. Tom Wolf announced that the state intends to allow local school officials to make decisions on mask-wearing in schools beginning on January 17.
