On Monday, the White House told businesses to move forward with implementing Biden’s vaccine mandate, despite the order being temporarily paused.

The Hill reports:

“We think people should not wait,” White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Monday. “We say, do not wait to take actions that will keep your workplace safe. It is important and critical to do and waiting to get more people vaccinated will lead to more outbreaks and sickness.”

“We’re trying to get past this pandemic, and we know the way to do that is to get people vaccinated,” Jean-Pierre added.

The Biden administration maintains that it is on firm legal footing after a federal appeals court in New Orleans temporarily blocked the rule, which was developed by the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), on Saturday.

“The administration clearly has the authority to protect workers and actions announced by the president are designed to save lives and stop the spread of COVID-19,” Jean-Pierre said Monday, noting that the Justice Department would be defending the rule in court.

On Saturday, three-out-of-five federal judges noted serious constitutional concerns over Biden’s mandate and issued the temporary stay on the rule. Last week, it was also revealed that the vaccine mandate would go into effect Jan. 4th and after then employers could be fined up to $14,000 for each violation.