AMU Lawsuit Over HHS Mandate Dismissed - For Now
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Published on Monday, 01 April 2013 15:58
A U.S. District Court judge has put on hold Ave Maria University's lawsuit against the federal government's mandate that insurance plans cover at no cost contraceptives and other procedures contrary to Catholic teaching.
Judge John Antoon in Fort Myers ruled Friday to dismiss Ave Maria University's lawsuit without prejudice -- meaning it can be brought forward later -- saying it would be not appropriate to rule at this time because AMU faces no immediate penalties and the federal government's rules are still evolving.
"This Court therefore joins the overwhelming majority of courts to have addressed similar challenges by similarly situated plaintiffs in concluding that Ave Maria's claims are not ripe for adjudication," Judge Antoon wrote, referring to a number of other court decisions involving religious schools and organizations -- including the archdiocese of Miami -- that were dismissed for similar reasons. Religious organizations were granted a "safe harbor" delaying a requirement for compliance until January, 2014, and the federal government said it is still considering further modifications of the regulations.
UPDATE: AMU President Jim Towey, who has said for more than a year that AMU would not comply with regulations that compromised the university's adherence to Catholic teaching, said the university will be back in court if final federal regulations are not acceptable.
"The Obama administration has bought itself time by promising to change its regulations and the Court's dismissal order explicitly relies on this promise," Mr. Towey said in a statement. "If the final regulations that come out this summer do not keep this promise, Ave Maria University will be back in Federal Court with this lawsuit. The clock is ticking. In 274 days, on January 1, 2014, the so-called "safe harbor" protection the University now enjoys will no longer exist, and the Obama administration's contraception mandate will be in full force."
Click here for the text of the court decision, on the website of the Beckett Fund for Religious Liberty, which is representing AMU and many other institutions in similar cases.
Click here for the full statement by Ave Maria University.
