OMAHA- A group of students has filed a civil lawsuit against Creighton University in response to the university’s mandate of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The lawsuit filed by four students on Wednesday alleges that Creighton “refused to consider or grant religious exemptions” in mandating the vaccine for all students.

The university announced July 7 that the vaccine would be required for all students attending classes or events on campus. On Aug. 23, a waiver that allowed students to opt out of the vaccine was withdrawn after the Food and Drug Administration approval of the Pfizer vaccine.

Students were required to provide proof of vaccination by Sept. 7 to be allowed on campus.

Lauren Ramaekers, a Creighton student named as a plaintiff in the suit, is the president of Creighton’s anti-abortion group, Students For Life. In a press release, Ramaekers said she is opposed to taking the vaccine “because of the use of abortion-derived fetal cells in the research and development of the vaccines.”

In an affidavit filed with the court, Ramaekers said, “…the use of fetal tissue, fetal cells, or any ‘product’ of abortion in the development and/or testing of a vaccine or any other medical treatment, is abhorrent to me. This is a sincerely held religious belief, which impacts my moral and ethical views of the world.”

In a press release announcing the students’ lawsuit, their attorney Robert Sullivan said, “A Catholic university should never be placing its students in such a position where they may be required to violate the teachings of the Church.”

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