WASHINGTON (AP) - The Justice Department is filing an appeal seeking to overturn a judge’s order that voided the federal mask mandate on planes and trains and in travel hubs, officials said Wednesday.The notice came minutes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked the Justice Department to appeal the decision handed down by a federal judge in Florida earlier this week.A notice of appeal was filed in federal court in Tampa.RELATED: Federal mask mandate appeal depends on CDC, Biden administration saysThe CDC said in a statement Wednesday that it is its "continuing assessment that at this time an order requiring masking in the indoor transportation corridor remains necessary for the public health."A federal judge in Florida had struck down the national mask mandate for mass transit on Monday, leading airlines and airports to swiftly repeal their requirements that passengers wear face coverings.
The Transportation Security Administration said Monday that it would it will no longer enforce the mask requirement.The CDC had recently extended the mask mandate, which was set to expire Monday, until May 3 to allow more time to study the BA.2 omicron subvariant, which is now responsible for the vast majority of U.S.
cases. But the court ruling Monday had put that decision on hold.Fliers, subway riders shed masks after transit mandate lifted: 'Feel free to burn them'The CDC said it will continue to monitor public health conditions to determine if a mandate would remain necessary.