A group of Christian doctors from Texas reportedly celebrate the United States District Court's decision that President Joe Biden's Administration can't force them to commit abortions and transgender operations under Obamacare.
The Christian Headlines said the Christian medical coalition Franciscan Alliance, Inc. celebrated the court's decision released on Monday for a lawsuit they filed against the government's current interpretation of the Affordable Care Act, also known as the Obamacare, that requires hospitals and doctors to comply to the law by performing transgender operations and abortions.
The lawsuit was filed by the Franciscan Alliance against the United States Department of Health and Human Services and its Secretary Xavier Becerra last June 4 with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas as intervenors. The lawsuit cites the new rule implemented for the Obamacare in 2016 that imposes penalties on medical providers "for unlawful discrimination" on abortions and transgender operations.
According to the ruling dated August 9 and signed by Federal Court Judge Reed O'Connor, the said new rule has faced "legal challenges" from "several states" besides the Franciscan Alliance who are referred to as "Christian Plaintiffs" since they object to its enforcement viewing such procedures as "harmful" and "would violate their religious beliefs."
The ruling also pointed out that the Biden Administration's current interpretation of the said new rule is contrary to the exercise of religious beliefs and, as such, have ordered the government "including their successors in office" from the enforcement of the said interpretation.
"For the foregoing reasons, the Court GRANTS Plaintiffs' request for a permanent injunction and PERMANENTLY ENJOINS HHS, Secretary Becerra, their divisions, bureaus, agents, officers, commissioners, employees, and anyone acting in concert or participation with them, including their successors in office, from interpreting or enforcing Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, 42 U.S.C. § 18116(a), or any implementing regulations thereto against Plaintiffs, their current and future members, and those acting in concert or participation with them," O'Connor concluded in the ruling.
O'Connor added that the 23-paged decision that the ruling encompasses the Christian Plaintiffs' "respective health plans and any insurers or third-party administrators in connection with such health plans, in a manner that would require them to perform or provide insurance coverage for gender-transition procedures or abortions, including by denying Federal financial assistance because of their failure to perform or provide insurance coverage for such procedures or by otherwise pursuing, charging, or assessing any penalties, fines, assessments, investigations, or other enforcement actions."
Last May, the Biden Administration released a new rule that imposes punishment on doctors refusing transgender surgery. The said rule was seen as a violation on Christian doctor's right to refuse such a procedure on the basis of their religious beliefs. Lawyer Luke Goodrich condemned the new interpretation as "bad for patients, doctors, and religious liberty."
The Biden Administration was under fire last week due to the Department of Justice's decision to dismiss a case filed against the University of Vermont Medical Center by a Catholic nurse who was forced to assist in abortion contrary to her religious convictions.
Nonetheless, a report in April showed that religious liberty is still "winning" in the United States Supreme Court due to an increase in cases favoring it. Data reported by CBN News showed that 81% of cases favored religious liberty, showing a 31% increase in Supreme Court decisions on it in the past 70 years.
