Supreme Court to review abortion and contraception mandates in Obamacare
Religious objections to the Obama administration’s abortion/contraception mandates have gained new life after the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a federal appeals judge to reconsider a Christian university’s challenge to the health care law.
President Barack Obama meets with senior advisors in the Roosevelt Room. 2/16/09. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals previously dismissed Liberty University’s challenge to the law’s individual and employer insurance mandates as well as the subsequent mandate by the Department of Health and Human Services that employee health insurance cover contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs.
While Liberty appealed to the Supreme Court, the court dismissed the appeal when it issued its groundbreaking decision upholding Obamacare in June.
Monday the court granted Liberty a new hearing, ordering the 4th Circuit to reconsider Liberty University v. Geithner in response to a new appeal Liberty filed after the June decision.
The nonprofit Liberty Counsel, representing the Virginia university, said the newest development revives the religious challenge to Obamacare, possibly returning the issue to the Supreme Court in 2013.
“Today’s ruling breathes new life into our challenge to Obamacare. Our fight against Obamacare is far from over,” said Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver, dean of Liberty University’s law school.
“Congress exceeded its power by forcing every employer to provide federally mandated insurance. But even more shocking is the abortion mandate, which collides with religious freedom and the rights of conscience.”
In the high court’s 5-4 decision, the justices used lawsuits filed by 26 states and the National Federation of Independent Business to uphold the health care law, then rejected all other pending appeals, including Liberty’s.
