Philadelphia Sued After Reinstating Indoor Mask Mandate

A group of exasperated business owners and residents are suing the City of Philadelphia for reinstating its indoor mask mandate.

The petitioners filed their lawsuit in the state's Republican-leaning Commonwealth Court. They're hopeful about the prospects of overturning the citywide mandate that began today.

Fox Business reports:

Philadelphia this week became the first major U.S. city to reinstate its indoor mask mandate after reporting a sharp increase in coronavirus infections, with the city's top health official saying she wanted to forestall a potential new wave driven by an omicron subvariant.

Attorney Thomas W. King III, who was among those involved in last year's successful challenge to the statewide mask mandate in schools, said the city's emergency order went against recommendations of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and “imposed a renegade standard unfound anywhere else in the world.”

“The citizens bringing this action today have had enough of Philadelphia acting in a way contrary to the rest of the world. Philadelphia is required, like everyone else, to comply with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. No one is above the law,” King added.

Health officials announced Level Two COVID-19 response levels last week after authorities reported a greater than 50% increase in confirmed cases over the past ten days.

Level Two precautions mean that the city requires masks in all indoor public settings, including schools. Under the current rules, businesses may opt-out of the mandate if they make all customers provide proof of vaccination.

CNN adds:

The group filing the lawsuit says the mandate violates the state's Constitution and flouts guidelines established by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“The regulations imposed by Philadelphia are arbitrary and capricious,” the attorney representing petitioners, Thomas W. King III told CNN in an interview Sunday. “Philadelphia jettisoned the CDC regulations and is inventing its own. Philadelphia violated the Pennsylvania Constitution. Things that apply in Philadelphia must apply statewide, but that's not what's happening.”

Neither Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney nor the city's health department has responded to CNN's request for comment.