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Health Care Wed Jul 18 2012
Wheaton College Sues Over "Preventative Services" Mandate
Wheaton College, in Wheaton, IL, is filing a lawsuit alongside the Catholic University of America in opposition to a birth-control-related mandate from the Department of Health and Human Services. The mandate requires most employers to provide health care that includes birth control coverage.
"This mandate is not just a Catholic issue -- it threatens people of all faiths," says Kyle Duncan, General Counsel, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. "Wheaton's historic decision to join the fight alongside a Catholic institution shows the broad consensus that the mandate endangers everyone's religious liberty."
Religious groups, including Catholic-affiliated healthcare agencies, schools (including the Univesity of Notre Dame) and church groups filed similar suits, stating that the mandate violates religious freedoms.
This isn't the first time Wheaton has made headlines due to faith-based policy. Last year, the Princeton Review listed the school as most LGBT-unfriendly school in the nation.