John Kennedy, president and CEO of Autocam and Autocam Medical in Grand Rapids, MI, recently filed suit over the HHS mandate requiring employers to provide artificial birth control, abortifacients and abortions as part of medical care coverage. On Wednesday, government attorneys explained the rejection of his suit, on the basis that it had no merit.

The government contends that provisions of the law that form Kennedy’s objections “are intended to help ensure that women have access to health coverage, without cost-sharing, for certain preventive services that medical experts have deemed necessary for women’s health and well-being.”

The services include contraceptive methods approved by the Food and Drug Administration, sterilization, and education and counseling for women during reproductive years.

“Plaintiffs’ challenge rests largely on the legal theory that a for-profit corporation established to engage in manufacturing can claim to exercise religion and thereby avoid the reach of laws designed to mercial activity and protect the rights of employees,” Jacek Pruski, U.S. Department of Justice trial attorney, wrote in response to the lawsuit.

“This cannot be,” he wrote.

Mr. Kennedy’s attorney, Jason Miller, says the law forces some employers to participate in what they believe is intrinsic evil.

Mr. Kennedy recently spoke on this topic in a free Acton podcast available here.

You can read the entire article regarding the federal lawsuit here.