28:40 quick intro. that judge's ruling today, saying they are reviewing the judge's order but that for now the TSA will not enforce the mask mandate on public transportation. And adding to all of that confusion as you mentioned there is a new mask mandate here in Philadelphia that took effect today. That means about 20 000 fans here to see The 76ers play tonight will have to mask up once again
29:23 You can now fly or ride the buses and trains mask free. The move comes just hours after a federal judge in Florida ruled it was unlawful today, A U S district judge said the court accepts the CDC's argument that masks will limit COVID-19 transmission but that alone was not sufficient to exceed authority infectious disease specialist doctor Celine Gounder says it's still too soon. We don't know how the be a 2 variant is going to play out across the country as of right now my advice as a physician anybody traveling on a plane would be to continue wearing a mask when you're traveling on public transportation, including on an airplane. Let's set the context for people who don't live in America just kind of miss this somehow. The CDC
30:13 asserted it had the regulatory authority and power to impose these mandates. And that was ultimately challenged by a federal judge in, well not challenge but overturned by a federal judge in Florida of course, a Trump appointee which makes it just that much more fun and also you got to wonder why now? Why not a year ago Judge? This is because Trump... Because they came before her. The judges can't just ad lib and do whatever they want whenever they want. How does that work? You have to have something has to come before you that you make a determination Do we know who brought this before the judge It's kind of vague but somebody did it was in Florida, and that's when the whole thing came down I had three NPR stuff which kind of outlines in a little bit This is this is mask ruling one
31:07 The federal government is now appealing a court decision that struck down the federal mask mandate on public transportation. The Justice Department filed the appeal at the request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Face coverings became optional this week on many planes, trains and buses after a federal judge declared that the CDC had exceeded its authority in requiring masks for travelers The CDC has faced many such challenges to its authority during the pandemic, to what it can and can't do in the name of public health. Now it's fighting back." So we kind of jumped over one little piece here is that the mandate was overturned which is immediate law and you probably saw people on airplanes getting announcements
31:50 with various responses, but I would say mainly positive. On the 18th when this took place the CDC had already said we're going to do two more weeks until May 3rd to just make sure that everything's okay with the BA2 variant Then there was this period of like 36 hours, like oh are they going to appeal? What are they going to do and then it was no we're not gonna appeal that. We are going to appeal so now they are appealing and I look forward to what else you have from NPR Well here's part two at the same clip. NPR health reporter Ping Huang is here hi ping ping So this wait a minute would you say hey I or his name
32:34 What did she say there? NPR health reporter Ping Huang is here. Hi, Ping! Hey Ari! So this mask rule that is now being challenged by the Justice Department will it stand? Well that's still up in the air as you mentioned the Justice Department and CDC are now appealing to get a travel mask mandate reinstated and the CDC says the order for wearing masks on planes trains and buses is still needed for public health And also that appealing the decision protects their public health authority Who said this?! Wait a minute She's ad-libbing. No, no they all say this. They all say this! They all say this! Oh it's safe and effective okay I'm sorry it's just one of those little terms they throw in go on The order for wearing masks on planes trains and buses is still needed for public health And also that appealing the decision protects their public health authority The nationwide mask mandate on trains buses and planes was struck down Monday by a Trump appointed judge who thought that the CDC did not have the authority to make people wear masks even if it might be good for public health
33:32 The Justice Department and CDC disagree, so this evening the DOJ filed a notice of appeal in federal court in Tampa to get the ball rolling. Question is it? So this is specifically the Department of Justice's job to go against the federal judge Is that is that is that the typical procedure Well, they can go against any judge they want. Right but is it typically the Department of Justice who does that? And what does that mean? It goes to the next... Well anybody can do it. The Department of Justice would be the one who was affected because their representing the United States government. The Department of Justice is the lawyers for the government, and so this was against the CDC, so boom they would take it. Got it. So if it was a question of authority whether the CDC's allowed to do this... Is it clear what kinds of powers the CDC has?
34:23 Well, traditionally the CDC makes the most use of its soft powers. You know using science and reason to persuade states and individuals to do things for the sake of public health but it also has hard powers which go back to the 1944 Public Health Service Act in the past The agency is used these two quarantine individuals And in this pandemic CDC has been using them to issue broad orders on a range of things like making travelers test mask to banning evictions and turning migrants away at the borders Dr. Marty Setran, the CDC's head of global migration and quarantine told me last year that this is new territory for the CDC This has been the largest and most expansive or inclusive use of regulatory authority given the unprecedented nature of this pandemic threat
35:09 No one from CDC would talk on the record now as these orders get challenged in court and the mask ruling was just the latest defeat. I thought we had dealt with the CDC didn't we did we all like when we're laughing at the CDC because they reversed, they reversed all of their positions like overnight clearly political move and it was all CDC, we need to get rid of them. They need to have a new organization. We need to reboot them, have something new." I wonder if that's part of what this is? You never know. It's so politicized at this point
35:47 That's as if the CDC, you know they turn left there. They say you know this these Republicans have a point No, they don't you should go It's hard to say what with the basis of this these crazinesses are about but it is totally political was that? Part yeah, I was too that was two Oh, okay, right three he's got the kicker in it like what were some of the others well The biggest blow came last August when the Supreme Court ruled at the CDC exceeded its authority with its ban on evictions and Lindsay Wiley, a health law professor at UCLA said that the move was a bit of a stretch for CDC. A lot of the general public and a lot of federal judges feel like, you know this isn't exactly what CDC's role should be. This is something state and local governments are doing and it should really be left to them." Ultimately the Supreme Court said CDC didn't have the authority to do it and they struck it down now that was one ruling on evictions but law experts say it had a ripple effect lower courts could use it to limit those CDCs powers too and the judge in Florida did cite it this week as she canceled the travel mask mandate
36:49 What would that ripple effect do if the CDC's powers get restricted more broadly? What kind of impacts could that have on public health? Well, they worry that limiting public health powers is short-sighted. Here's Wendy Parmitt a Health Law professor at Northeastern University. You can't assume that everything in the future is going to look either epidemiologically or politically like what we have seen She says the next pandemic could be very deadly to kids Or one where Republicans might want more restrictive measures than Democrats as they did during the Ebola outbreak She says that the CDC needs flexible powers to deal with health threats effectively. Now, ultimately Congress may need to step in and spell out the agency's powers but with the current political climate it is not a clear path.
37:38 said no evictions. What is their, what can it... they're not the military police you know in a war zone? They can't just make these sorts of edicts and now they're all bent out of shape because they got overturned by the Supreme Court The whole thing is bogus. they would appeal, not just because they think it's entirely reasonable of course to have this additional time to look at it but because they think that the current for current and future public health crises we want to preserve that authority for the CDC. It's about power I just want to have it for the next thing they wanna put you know now it'll be a bag on your head
38:33 I need something else. Yeah, they just wanted to... it's power! It has two holes in it. Power from the faceless nameless CDC That's exactly right they want to put a bag on your head and march you around yeah You nailed it. The flight is? By the way have a longer clip about them about the appeal Let's do that. Let's wish you could play it You can cut it off because this is definitely was not clipped properly by me I can tell by the little yeah, they never buy the length of them let's listen Yeah, this is under feds appealing mask yeah