Thursday 11 July 2013

Court rejects Christian university challenge to 'Obamacare'


(Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected a Christian university's religion-based challenge against part of President Barack Obama's 2010 healthcare overhaul, which the school claimed had forced taxpayers and employers to subsidize abortions and contraception.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, rejected claims by Liberty University that mandates requiring people to buy minimum levels of health insurance coverage and requiring many employers to offer such coverage violated the U.S. Constitution.

In 2011, the 4th Circuit had dismissed Liberty's case on the ground that it lacked jurisdiction. The next year, the U.S. Supreme Court by a 5-4 vote upheld most of the healthcare law, and directed the 4th Circuit to revisit the case in light of that decision.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Sandra Maler)

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