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The American Center for Law & Justice (“ACLJ”) announced Friday that, along with seventy-nine Members of Congress, it has submitted “friend of the court” briefs in twelve separate lawsuits brought by more than forty Catholic organizations:
"...The Catholic organizations, including the Archdiocese of New York, the University of Notre Dame, and Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, are challenging the HHS mandate...The mandate requires employers to cover sterilization, prescription contraceptives, abortion-inducing drugs, and related patient education and counseling services in their health insurance plans regardless of the employers’ religious opposition to such activities and services...The briefs were submitted in support of the Catholic organizations, who are opposing the federal government’s motions to dismiss their twelve lawsuits. The briefs were submitted with requests that the courts accept them for filing..."Senior Counsel of the ACLJ, Edward White, says:
"The mandate devastates the religious freedom of all employers seeking to comply with their religious beliefs. This is not just an issue negatively impacting Catholics. This is an issue negatively impacting employers of all faiths."According to an ACLJ statement, in the briefs submitted in the cases backing the Catholic organizations, the ACLJ opposes the federal government's motions to dismiss the 12 lawsuits. The briefs were submitted with requests that the courts accept them for filing.
Additionally the ACLJ claims that "...[J]oining the ACLJ on the briefs are 79 Members of the United States House of Representatives..."
"...The ACLJ and the Members of Congress explain in their 'friend of the court' briefs that the mandate runs counter to America's long and proud tradition of accommodating the religious beliefs and practices of all its citizens. The briefs contend that the mandate imposes an unconstitutional burden on individuals and organizations, who firmly oppose having to subsidize, provide, and/or facilitate activities and services that are contrary to their religious beliefs..."Earlier this month, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, chair of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, called on Congress to address the crisis in health care sparked by the Obama administration’s contraceptive/sterilization coverage mandate in an August 3 letter to members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Cardinal DiNardo said:
“...The fundamental importance of the religious freedom issue at stake demands a timely congressional response...Through this mandate, the [Obama] Administration is promoting an approach to religious freedom that is more grudging and arbitrary than any yet seen in federal law...a minority of religious employers – those which, among other things, engage primarily in prayer and preaching – are said to be exempt from the mandate...By contrast, religious organizations which live out their faith by reaching out to all in need with health care and other humanitarian services are deemed ‘not religious enough’ for the exemption. Many, though not all, of these organizations will qualify for a one-year delay in enforcement, after which partial control of their health plans will be handed over by the government to others willing to implement the mandate..."DiNardo noted there were several lawsuits opposing the mandate brought by institutions and individuals, and added:
“...The validity of the religious freedom claim against the contraceptive mandate is clearer than ever – even for those supposedly ‘secular’ companies whose rights are completely ignored under that mandate...Yet timely and uniform protection of these rights cannot be expected from the current lengthy judicial process. Therefore the Catholic bishops of the United States and many others fervently hope Congress will address this urgent and fundamental issue before it completes its business this year...”The ACLJ noted that its own federal lawsuit challenging the HHS mandate is proceeding in federal court in St. Louis, Missouri, and that this is the first lawsuit filed on behalf of a private business, contending the mandate violates constitutionally-protected religious beliefs. (The ACLJ just filed a motion urging the court to block the HHS mandate for O'Brien Industrial Holdings, LLC.)
