How the Supreme Court’s COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate Rulings Could Shape the Pandemic’s Next Phase

n the wake of the US Supreme Court’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate rulings, medical groups and public health organizations expressed a mixture of relief and disappointment. On one hand, the nation’s highest court had upheld the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulation regarding vaccination requirements for health care workers. On the other hand, the justices decided that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) did not have the authority to require vaccination or masking and regular testing for employees outside the health care system.