City of Costa Mesa v. U.S.
Overview
City of Costa Mesa v. U.S. (U.S. District Court – Central District of California, Feb. 21, 2020): A California district court lifted a temporary restraining order blocking the transfer of individuals exposed to, or infected with, COVID-19 to a state-owned facility in Costa Mesa. The city initially sought to stop the transfer, arguing that the facility had not been properly assessed nor had local public health officials been informed as to how the community would be protected. When federal authorities decided to no longer pursue the transfer to Costa Mesa, the court removed the injunction and dismissed the case. Similarly, San Antonio sued to block the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from releasing over 120 COVID-19 evacuees from quarantine at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. CDC allowed a patient, who tested negative for COVID-19 twice, to leave quarantine before receiving a third positive test result. The city asked the court to maintain the quarantine and require individuals to undergo three—not two—COVID-19 tests before being released. The court rejected the city’s requests on grounds that it lacked authority to second-guess the federal government’s social distancing efforts.
View all cases in the Judicial Trends in Public Health – March 17, 2020.