The most outstanding evangelical higher education institution in the United States has filed a lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s administration over a mandate to provide contraceptive coverage. Wheaton College on Illinois has joined Catholic counterparts Catholic University and the University of Notre Dame in filing suits to stop a Health and Human Services mandate to provide birth control coverage to their employees. The suit is reportedly significant because the new evangelical opposition to the policy could have political fallout in this election-year.
The president’s mandate required employers to provide free contraception coverage to their employees, exempting churches, but including other religiously affiliated employers, such as churches and hospitals. Due to the opposition, in February, the administration amended its original rule to require health insurers, not employers, to cover the cost of birth control, reasoning that would prevent religious groups from having to finance such coverage.
