Attorney General Alan Wilson leads fight for religious liberty
December 4, 2023
Attorney General Alan Wilson led a multistate coalition of 18 states defending religious liberty. A church in Washington state was unlawfully forced to provide health insurance to its employees that covered abortions and abortion-inducing drugs. The First Amendment protects religious institutions’ “autonomy with respect to internal management decisions that are essential to the institution’s central mission.”
“Churches should not be forced to provide healthcare coverage for abortions. Period,” said Attorney General Alan Wilson. “Situations like this are just another reason why we have the First Amendment at all. But when the First Amendment and religious liberty are being threatened, we’re going to fight back.”
The Washington law of issue, SB 6129, requires all health plans to provide the insured with “substantially equivalent coverage to permit the abortion of a pregnancy.”
The amicus brief argues, “Unfortunately, SB 6219 presents [the church] with an unconstitutional Hobson’s choice: adopt a group health plan that funds abortions in violation of its central mission of protecting unborn life or be punished. Becoming self-insured is virtually not an option, as it would cost the church roughly $243,125 more annually, with that number expected to double within a few years. And self-insurance does not provide comparable benefits, as it would require [the church] to assume 100% of the risk of claims exceeding premiums, unlike fully insured plans that place all risk on the carrier. Ironically, the only way for Cedar Park to continue funding its mission is to purchase health insurance that directly contradicts its mission.”
This issue was previously heard before a District Court. The District Court upheld the unconstitutional Washington state law and ruled against religious liberty. The amicus brief led by Attorney General Wilson is on the appellate level, asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to reverse the initial decision.
Led by South Carolina Attorney General Wilson, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia signed onto the brief.
