On Tuesday, June 18, a federal court granted Geneva College′s motion for a preliminary injunction, thereby enabling the college to continue facilitating a student health insurance plan that does not include morally objectionable abortion-inducing drugs. The injunction will remain in effect until the court renders final judgment, or until a higher court conclusively resolves the legal issues. This decision prohibits the Obama Administration from applying the Mandate to Geneva or the provider of its student plan. The Mandate would require Geneva′s student plan to cover Plan B (the so-called "morning-after" pill) and Ella (the "week-after" pill).
The college is not opposed to contraceptive coverage in general. The college is, however, opposed to abortifacient drugs which cause or tend to cause the termination of a pregnancy. As a reformed Christian college, Geneva believes in the sanctity of life and objects, on biblical grounds, to being forced to provide the drugs through its insurance provider.
Geneva believes that the federal government forcing it to facilitate the use of the abortion-inducing drugs through its insurance plans violates both its first amendment rights to freedom of religion in the Constitution, and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).
Following Tuesday′s decision, Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Gregory S. Baylor said, "All Americans should be free to live according to their faith rather than be forced to violate their own consciences. That′s no different for Geneva College, a Christian college that simply wants to abide by the very faith it espouses and teaches. The court has done the right thing in allowing Geneva College to offer a student health plan that does not cover abortion pills. The government should not punish people of faith for making decisions consistent with that faith."
Geneva College invites students to accept the challenge of an academically excellent, Christ-centered education. Offering nearly 40 undergraduate majors, an Adult Degree Completion Program with fully online and campus-based options, and seven graduate degrees, Geneva has programs that place students at the forefront of higher learning. Adhering to the inerrancy of scripture, the liberal arts core curriculum fosters a breadth of knowledge through the study of humanities, social and natural sciences, and experiential learning.
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