Yes, I know the Obama administration named the portion of Obamacare the "contraception mandate", not the abortion mandate, but as has been explained multiple times, the name is misleading because while the mandate would force institutions run by religious groups to provide access to insurance that covered contraception, they would also, under the same rule, be forced to provide access to insurance companies that provide sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs, which goes against religious freedoms.So, Obama can call it a contraception mandate all he wants, but it is just as accurate to call it the abortion mandate.
With that said, not only have six separate religious organizations filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration over the mandate, now seven states have just filed lawsuits to block the requirement.
The attorney generals of Texas, Florida, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Carolina jointly filed the lawsuit in a Nebraska US District Court.
Two private citizens, two religious non-profit organizations and a Catholic school also joined the lawsuit against the contraception mandate, which is part of President Barack Obama's sweeping health care law.
The lawsuit asks a federal judge to declare the law unconstitutional and enjoin the government from enforcing the requirement.
The states filed the suit despite a compromise announced by Obama earlier this month in which religious organizations with objections to the law will no longer be required to offer free birth control to female employees next year.
Under Obama's new approach, insurance companies, rather than religious organizations, will be obligated to offer contraception for free to the institutions' employees.
"The president's so called 'accommodation' was nothing but a shell game: the mandate still requires religious organizations to subsidize and authorize conduct that conflicts with their religious principles," Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said in a statement. "The very first amendment to our Constitution was intended to protect against this sort of government intrusion into our religious convictions."
The Obama administration did not comment on the lawsuit Thursday.
Just as a reminder of why this is unconstitutional: First Amendment:
• Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
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