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SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — The University of Notre Dame is considering an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court in its challenge to part of the federal health care law that forces it to cover contraceptives in its health insurance for students and employees.
Attorneys for the Roman Catholic university have notified the U.S. District Court in Northern Indiana that they are considering seeking a writ of certiorari that would ask the nation's highest court to review the decisions in the case thus far, the South Bend Tribune reported Thursday (http://bit.ly/1xFVN2x ).
The Supreme Court has allowed Notre Dame an extension until Oct. 4 to file a writ. At least four of the nine justices must agree to grant to writ of certiorari for it to proceed.
A federal district judge denied the school's request for a preliminary injunction against the birth control provision, and the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with that ruling.
Notre Dame contends the birth control provision violates its religious freedom despite an accommodation that allows the school to shift payment of the contraceptives elsewhere. Catholic doctrine bars most forms of contraception.
Notre Dame is one of more than a dozen schools and religious nonprofit organizations that have challenged the government's accommodation on religious grounds.
The Supreme Court in June ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby and other family-owned corporations in its federal health care overhaul lawsuit against the government. The ruling covered only businesses and not universities and non-profit organizations.
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Information from: South Bend Tribune, http://www.southbendtribune.com
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