A federal judge granted an injunction Tuesday to a Kansas City car dealer who opposes the Affordable Care Act's contraception mandate.
Randy Reed, who owns Randy Reed Automotive Inc., as well as Buick, Chevrolet and Nissan dealerships, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court opposing the mandate because of his Christian beliefs.
"Plaintiff Randy Reed believes that the Bible teaches that abortifacient drugs, contraception and sterilization are intrinsic evils," the petition states.
Specifically, the petition argues that Reed should not have to include in his employee health benefit plans "abortion-inducing" drugs.
Because Reed believes life begins at the moment of fertilization, he considers any contraception that can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb to be abortion inducing. That includes emergency contraceptives, such as Plan B, as well as intrauterine devices, a common form of birth control.
"Plaintiffs cannot in good conscience violate their religious beliefs by providing coverage for emergency contraception, IUDs, or counseling or education in furtherance of the same, in their health insurance plans," the petition said.
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According to the filing, Reed employs about 179 full-time employees and maintains three group plans through Coventry Insurance Group.
Kevin Smith, a Wichita attorney with the Law Offices of Kevin M. Smith PA, is representing Reed. He said corporations with dozens or hundreds of shareholders probably could not claim religious freedom rights because they don't all share religious beliefs.
"But what we're talking about are companies that are owned by families, by one person or two people or six people, and they all have the same beliefs," Smith said, noting that Reed is the sole shareholder in his companies. "They may make an argument that there's a right to choose, but literally they're forcing one person to pay for that other person's right."
The Affordable Care Act requires insurance carriers to fully cover all FDA-approved contraceptives, as well as other preventive health services, without a co-pay.
The Obama Administration has exempted many religious groups from the requirement, but has not made exceptions for commercial corporations.
Lower courts have been divided about whether the mandate violates Christian business owners' religious freedoms or not, and a pair of cases recently made it to the U.S. Supreme Court. One of those is a high-profile case submitted by Hobby Lobby Stores, as well as another from Conestoga Wood Specialties.
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Those lawyers are arguing that because the Citizens United decision found corporations are granted free speech protections, that same logic should be extended to their freedom of religion.
Smith said he and his client will wait to see how those cases are decided before moving forward. And although he said he's not a fan of the Affordable Care Act, he did say he has been pleased with the Justice Department's handling of his case.
"The Department of Justice is willing to wait until the Supreme Court decides before they make everybody litigate this," Smith said. "I've been very impressed by that."