Religious Freedom, transgender issues and abortion – overruling the US Health Department

Posted on January 2, 2017 
Filed under Culture wars, Resources

Assoc Prof Neil Foster“The recent (31 Dec 2016) decision of US Federal District Court Judge O’Connor in Franciscan Alliance Inc v Burwell (ND TX, Case 7:16-cv-00108-O; Dec. 31, 2016) (thanks to “Religion Clause” for the report and information) is a significant one.

In short, the Obama administration had used the prohibition on ‘sex discrimination’ in US Federal law to enact an administrative regulation requiring Christian health care providers (and some State governments) to provide transgender ‘transition’ procedures, and abortions, to all patients, arguing that denying this coverage amounted to sex discrimination.

This highly questionable interpretation has now been overturned by this very significant decision…”

– Neil Foster, at Law and Religion Australia, reports on developments in the United States.