CVS has settled with a nurse practitioner whom it had fired after she refused to prescribe certain birth control to patients due to her religious objections.
Robyn Strader was terminated from her job at a CVS Minute Clinic in Keller, Texas in 2021 because she refused to prescribe birth control that has the potential to act as an abortifacient. In January 2023, she sued the pharmacy chain, arguing that it violated her rights in terminating her employment. In the lawsuit, Strader maintained that her religious beliefs and actions were legally protected under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of religion. Her attorneys said that Strader could have been given other duties that would have allowed her to continue working without the need to prescribe birth control.
“I am a Christian and longtime member of a Baptist Church,” Strader said following her firing. “I believe that all human life is created in God’s image and should be protected. For this reason, I cannot participate in facilitating an abortion or participate in facilitating contraceptive use that could prevent the implantation of an embryo, cause an abortion, or contribute to infertility.”
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The lawsuit settlement was announced last week by First Liberty Institute and Boyden Gray PLLC. Terms of the settlement were not made public.
“We are thrilled that Robyn was able to reach a resolution with CVS,” said Stephanie Taub, Senior Counsel for First Liberty Institute. “We are hopeful that companies across the country will recognize the religious liberty of their employees and work to protect those rights.”
“Respecting the religious beliefs of workers and providing reasonable accommodations is not optional under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act,” added Jonathan Berry, Managing Partner at Boyden Gray PLLC and former head of rulemaking at the U.S. Department of Labor. “We are pleased for Robyn,” he said.
