Employers who object to the Affordable Care Act’s abortion/contraception mandate on the grounds of their convictions were given a big leg up in their fight for religious freedom Oct. 6.
The Trump administration announced an interim rule that expands the exemption to allow any employer or insurer to stop providing contraceptive services if they have religious or moral convictions against those things.
It would be up to states to decide how companies should make these determinations. The win for objectors comes after a six-year legal battle.
Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said the exemption is a “crucial achievement in the preservation of religious liberty.”
“The government has no business whatsoever forcing citizens to subsidize the destruction of human life and the exploitation of families and communities,” Moore said. “A government that can pave over the consciences of some can steamroll over dissent everywhere.”
More than 90 religious nonprofits, including GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention and four Baptist universities, challenged the mandate after it was enacted in 2011.
The Supreme Court decided in 2014 that the Affordable Care Act couldn’t require employers to offer insurance coverage for certain birth control methods they equate with abortion. The decision applied only to private corporations such as the family-owned companies — including retailer Hobby Lobby — that challenged the law.
The new interim rule will expand this exception.
O.S. Hawkins, GuideStone president, said, “This is indeed good news. … This new interim final rule … is not the end of the protracted legal battle endured by far too many ministries throughout our nation. However, it is a significant step in ending the years-long ordeal.” (TAB, RNS)
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