In a cohesive pattern various Catholic groups sued the Federal government in 12
federal courts all over the country on Monday, May 21st, 2012, challenging the
health-care-overhaul law's requirement that employers cover contraception in
workers' health plans.
The "Catholic" lawsuits were brought by the
University of Notre Dame, the Archdiocese of New York, Catholic University of
America and, among 36 others, archdioceses serving Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh,
St. Louis and Dallas.
The Catholic plaintiffs challenge a provision in
the healthcare law that requires most employers )including religious
institutions) to cover all preventative health services, including contraception
as part of their insurance policies, without out-of-pocket costs for consumers.
Sterilization is one of the methods of birth control included, as is the
so-called "morning-after" pill. After heavy criticism, the Administration said
last February (2012) it would modify the requirement to permit Catholic
employers to avoid directly providing birth control in their policies. Instead,
insurance companies would be required to provide contraception for participants
who wanted it, without explicitly charging either the religious employer or
worker. Federal officials are still working out how to implement its
proposal.
But the Catholics have also expressed broader concerns, saying
that even if a compromise is worked out for religiously affiliated institutions,
it wouldn't address the objections of employers who are Catholic and run secular
businesses.
The U.S. Health and Human Services Department adopted the
rule to improve health care for women. In 2011, an advisory panel from the
Institute of Medicine, which advises the Federal government, recommended
including birth control on the list of covered services, in part because the
rule promoted maternal and child health by allowing women to space their
pregnancies.
[USA Today, May 21, 2012; WSJ, May 22, 2012]
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