AG Luther Strange Disappointed with U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Attorney General Luther Strange voiced disappointment over an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling, Thursday, against the Birmingham-based Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) in their religious liberty lawsuit against Obamacare’s contraceptive coverage mandate.
“The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2-1 vote upheld a lower court ruling forcing Alabama religious broadcaster EWTN to provide contraceptive coverage to its employees in direct opposition to the religious beliefs of its lay Catholic operators,” said Attorney General Strange.
“I am disappointed in the ruling but the battle to defend religious liberty from federal assault continues as Alabama and 19 other states have joined a similar lawsuit, Zubik v. Burwell, before the U.S. Supreme Court this year. Religious non-profits like EWTN provide a tremendous service to the public and have no less a constitutional right to exercise their religious beliefs than an individual citizen.”
Alabama was a co-plaintiff in EWTN’s case against Obamacare’s infringement upon the liberty of the religious non-profit and supported its appeal when a lower court ruled against EWTN in June 2014.
EWTN was granted an injunction from federal fines for failing to provide contraceptive coverage under the Obamacare mandate pending the outcome of its case. Today, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals continued the injunction contingent upon the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in Zubik v. Burwell.
