Montana Medical Association v. Austin Knudsen

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

MONTANA MEDICAL No. 23-35014

ASSOCIATION; FIVE VALLEYS

UROLOGY, PLLC; PROVIDENCE D.C. No. 9:21-cv-

HEALTH & SERVICES - 00108-DWM

MONTANA; WESTERN

MONTANA CLINIC, PC; PAT

APPLEBY; MARK CARPENTER; OPINION

DIANA JO PAGE; WALLACE L.

PAGE; CHEYENNE SMITH,

Plaintiffs-Appellees,

MONTANA NURSES

ASSOCIATION,

Intervenor-Plaintiff- Appellee,

v.

AUSTIN KNUDSEN, Montana Attorney General; LAURIE ESAU, Montana Commissioner of Labor and Industry,

Defendants-Appellants. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Montana Donald W. Molloy, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted February 8, 2024 Portland, Oregon

Filed October 9, 2024

Before: M. Margaret McKeown, Jay S. Bybee, and Daniel A. Bress, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge Bress; Concurrence by Judge McKeown

SUMMARY *

Vaccinations / Preemption

The panel (1) reversed the district court’s decision that Montana House Bill 702 (HB 702), which prohibits discrimination based on vaccination status, is preempted by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and…