Biden administration says no mask mandates after Trump voids

A federal agency, city transit authorities and private companies said they would no longer require travelers to wear masks after a federal judge appointed by former President Donald J. Trump voided a mandate on Monday that had been in place since February of last year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended the mandate through May 3 to assess the state of the epidemic, just days earlier in the day.

Two senior officials said the ruling took officials inside the White House by surprise and frustrated them. On Tuesday, as travelers aboard airplanes took directions from pilots to unmask and riders aboard transit systems, including in Washington, went mask-free, the Biden administration did not lay out a detailed plan to challenge the ruling, even as public health experts warned that the C.D. C.'s authority to prevent the spread of a contagious virus was on the line.

On Tuesday, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said the decision to remove the masking decision should have been up to the C.D. C. and not the courts.

Public health decisions shouldn't be made by the courts, but by public health experts, Ms. Psaki told reporters on the way to New Hampshire. We feel confident in our authorities, given that we put the mask mandate in place and asked for 15 additional days to evaluate data based on public health information. The administration's confidence in its ability to enforce masking requirements was a conflicted with the reality that many masking regulations seemed to dissolve within hours of the ruling. Some in New York City are staying in place. The Transportation Safety Authority said on Monday it would stop enforcing the C.D. C. mandate. Some airlines, including Delta and United, told travelers that masks wouldn't be required, while others learned of the news mid-flight.