A Seattle-based church is suing the state of Washington for forcing coverage of elective abortions into their health insurance plans, as reported by CBN News.
The case has already reached the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit after a lower court dismissed Cedar Park Assembly of God’s complaint. The opening brief presented to the appellate court challenged the Washington State Senate Bill 6219, which was signed into law in March 2018. The bill requires all employers offering healthcare plans with maternity care to also cover elective abortion procedures.
According to the Alliance Defending Freedom, a nonprofit representing the church, the law restricts Cedar Park’s First Amendment rights.
“No church should be forced to cover abortions, and certainly not a church that dedicates its ministry to protecting and celebrating life like Cedar Park does,” said ADF Legal Counsel Elissa Graves. “Cedar Park believes and teaches that every human life begins at conception and it’s worthy of protection until natural death, so providing insurance coverage for abortions is clearly not something the church can or should be forced to do.
“And Cedar Park doesn’t simply believe in the importance of human life, it puts those beliefs into practice by partnering with a local pregnancy care center, hosting an annual camp for foster care children, and ministering to hundreds of couples…
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