travel mask mandate

A discarded mask is seen on the floor inside New York's John F. Kennedy Airport on Tuesday, a day after a federal judge in Florida struck down the CDC's mask mandate for public transportation.

Health & Safety

Battle over CDC's powers goes far beyond travel mask mandate

5:46pm April 21, 2022

by Pien Huang

A federal judge's decision to strike down the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's mask mandate for travelers is only the latest in a series of challenges that seek to rein in the agency.

Queue Listen Now

Airline passengers, some not wearing face masks following the end of the federal mask mandate, sit during a American Airlines flight operated by SkyWest Airlines from Los Angeles International Airport to Denver, on Tuesday.

The judge who tossed mask mandate misunderstood public health law, legal experts say

6:23pm April 19, 2022

Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle's decision hinged on a definition of the word 'sanitation' that public health experts and legal scholars say missed the mark.

Delta updated its statement Tuesday to remove the reference to "an ordinary, seasonal virus." A spokesperson told NPR over email that it had done so "for clarity and accuracy."

Delta updates its statement calling COVID a 'seasonal virus' after a backlash

2:43pm April 19, 2022

by Rachel Treisman

The airline changed its announcement about the end of the federal mask mandate after a firestorm of criticism from public health experts who called it inaccurate and misleading.

Judge Kathryn Mizelle was confirmed as U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Florida in November 2020.

What to know about Judge Kathryn Mizelle, who struck down the travel mask mandate

2:11pm April 19, 2022

by Rachel Treisman

Mizelle was nominated by former President Donald Trump in 2020 at age 33. The American Bar Association said at the time she wasn't qualified because she hadn't been practicing law for long enough.

Travelers line up wearing protective masks indoors at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago in December 2021. U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle voided the national travel mask mandate on Monday.

These airlines are dropping mask mandates after a federal judge's ruling

8:14am April 19, 2022

by Jonathan Franklin

Delta, United, Southwest, American and Alaska Airlines and other say masks are now optional for travelers on their aircraft.