U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas issued a preliminary injunction Jan. 4 that paused a policy forcing masks on children and forcing staff members to get the Jab to keep their jobs.
According to The Dallas Morning News, the federal rule requires a mask on children 2-years-old and up, and employees were facing a January 31 deadline to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
The new requirements were announced in November but Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, sued to stop them.
James Covey of Texas Values points out Judge Hendrix faulted Xavier Becerra, the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services secretary, in his ruling.
"What the judge found,” Covey says, “was that the Head Start Act did not give the Secretary the power to be able to impose these types of requirements to receive Head Start funds."
Covey tells American Family News the Lubbock Independent School District joined in the lawsuit, too, over fear of losing students and staff.
"One of their arguments was that they would lose staff members because the staff members would be required to get vaccinated,” he explains. “And, of course, not everyone believes that's the best for their personal, medical decisions."
The plaintiffs sought a nationwide injunction but Judge Hendrix limited his ruling to Texas.
The temporary win for the State of Texas means the forced masking and Jab are halted pending a future trial.
