7th Circuit to hear Christian colleges’ case against abortion-pill mandate

WHO: ADF Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor
WHAT: Available for media interviews following oral arguments in Grace Schools v. Burwell  
WHEN: Wednesday, Dec. 3, immediately following hearing, which begins at 9:30 a.m. CST
WHERE: U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, Room 2721, 219 South Dearborn St., Chicago

 

CHICAGO – Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor will be available for media interviews immediately following his oral argument Wednesday before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit on behalf of Grace College and Seminary in Indiana and Biola University in California, both of which filed suit in 2012 against the Obama administration’s abortion-pill mandate.

The Department of Health and Human Services mandate forces employers, regardless of their religious or moral convictions, to provide access, through their health insurance plans, to abortion-inducing drugs and devices under threat of heavy financial penalties through the IRS.

“All Americans should oppose unjust laws that force people – under threat of punishment – to give up their fundamental freedoms and act contrary to their beliefs,” said Baylor. “These schools are no different. They simply want to abide by the Christian faith they espouse and teach. The government should not punish people of faith for making decisions consistent with that faith.”

Last year, a federal district court suspended enforcement of the mandate against the two schools. The administration appealed that decision to the 7th Circuit.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.