Tag: Becket Fund

Appellate Court Upholds Decision Protecting Pharmacists of Concience in Illinois

~ Pharmer

Court: Illinois Can't Force Pharmacists to Sell Plan B Drug | LifeNews.com.

The 2005 Blagojevich edict forcing pharmacists to dispense the morning after pill and all other birth control drugs without question or delay, suffered a second defeat, this time in appellate court. In 2011 the trial court had found that the law was invalid because it targeted a specific group, and that Illinois law prohibits discrimination in licensing those who cannot provide a particular service due to religious beliefs.
This lawsuit, which passed its second review, was the one involving pharmacy owners, Luke VanderBleek and Glenn Kosirog. Another lawsuit, which ended in favor of conscientious objectors, involved employee pharmacists in the same state.
The Appellate court opinion is available HERE.
VanderBleek and Kosirog have been represented since 2005 by attorneys of the ACLJ and the Becket Fund.

Now Obamacare Faces the Religious Freedom Challenges

~ Pharmer

Becket Fund’s HHS Mandate Challenge | Becket Fund.

There are dozens of federal lawsuits based upon the violations of human rights, that are expressed in the Sebelius HHS Mandate of Obamacare. At issue is its funding of birth control, sterilization and abortion, by forcing people to pay for it in violation of their religion. Obamacare also provides these services to minors without parental consent. Alliance Defense Fund has a fact sheet explaining these aspects of Obamacare.

The Colson center outlines the coming legal challenges to Obamacare in an article HERE.

In addition to religious affiliated organizations, private businesses owned by people of conscience are also filing suit against the Obamacare mandate, for example, O’Brien Industrial Holdings, LLC, represented by the American Center for Law and Justice.

Federal judge says Washington State cannot force pharmacies to sell morning after pill

~ Pharmer ~ 1 Comment

Governor Christine Gregoire is expected to appeal the federal court ruling which supports the pharmacists’ right to not dispense Plan B for reasons of conscience.
Judge Ronald Leighton noted that Washington state accepted all sorts of secular reasons for not stocking or dispensing a drug, but excluded conscience reasons. He declared the application of their rules to force pharmacists to dispense morning after pills to be unconstitutional. He noted that the Washington Board of Pharmacy stocking rules were “designed to force religious objectors to dispense Plan B.”
Judge Leighton had originally blocked the application of the dispensing rule to make Stormans’ pharmacy carry Plan B, but that was overturned by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which remanded the case back to Leighton. After an 11 day trial, this new opinion was issued, which Leighton says has been created with a skeptical appeals court in mind.
Kevin Stormans, owner of Ralph’s Thriftway pharmacy and fellow pharmacists have been waging a legal battle since 2007, with the aid of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and Seattle law firm of Ellis, Li & McKinstry.

Pharmer congratulates these courageous Washington Pharmacists on their legal victory, and prays for their continued success.

See the Ruling by Judge Ron Leighton HERE.

Becket Fund to provide free defense for religious hospitals against government-ordered abortions

~ Pharmer

Becket Fund to provide free defense for religious hospitals against government-ordered abortions.

Apparently the members of the ACLU recognize Catholic health care to be of such high quality that they want their abortions done at Catholic hospitals, rather than those hole-in-the-wall Planned Unparenthood clinics.

Their latest push is to pressure the government to force the religious affliliated hospital personnel  to vacuum the babies out of their women.

Above is linked an article from the Becket Fund which is offering pro-bono legal help for any health care professionals who are  victimized by the ACLU’s push to force participation in this killing.