Two New Challenges To Obama's Contraceptive Coverage Mandate Filed

Two more lawsuits, brought by religiously-affiliated universities, were filed yesterday to challenge the constitutionality of the Obama administration mandate that requires contraceptive services to be covered by most health insurance policies.  A press release from the Becket Fund reports that a suit was filed in federal court yesterday by Florida’s Ave Maria University.  The complaint (full text) in Ave Maria University v. Sebelius, (MD FL, filed 2/21/2012), claims that enforcing the mandate against Ave Maria would violate the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the free exercise, free speech and establishment clauses of the First Amendment, as well as the Administrative Procedure Act. (See prior related posting.)

UPDATE: Ave Maria's president is Jim Towey, former director of George W. Bush’s Office of Faith-Based & Community Initiatives. The Daily Caller reports on Towey's conference call with reporters announcing the lawsuit.

Meanwhile, yesterday the Presbyterian-affiliated Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania filed a similar lawsuit.  The complaint (full text) in Geneva College v. Sebelius, (WD PA, filed 2/21/2012) indicates that Geneva College's objections are limited to being required to cover contraceptives (such as Plan B and ella) that it considers to be abortifacients. However its lawsuit seeks a broad order barring application of the mandate in a way that substantially burdens anyone's religious beliefs.  The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on the lawsuit.