By JOHN P.CASTONGUAY
COLUMNIST
The Obama administration issued a statement Friday that is sure to reignite the debate surrounding the looming enforcement of the Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate. The “religious exemption” regarding paying for employees’ insurance coverage and includes contraception and abortifacients was clarified; non-profit religiously affiliated organizations, such as Catholic hospitals and universities, will have the opportunity to opt out of covering the contraception portion of insurance for their employees. Insurance companies will be responsible for covering contraception at no cost to the employee or employer. Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, writes, “Today, the administration is taking the next step in providing women across the nation with coverage of recommended preventive care at no cost, while respecting religious concerns.”
Several major objections have already surfaced in response to the revised mandate. Anna Higgins, the director of the Center for Human Dignity at the Family Resource Center, called the updated plan an “accounting gimmick,” elaborating, “Regardless of whether insurance companies or third party administrators use their dollars for an employee’s free abortifacients and contraceptives, the provision of these drugs and devices still necessarily depends on the religious employer’s health insurance plan.” She asserts that the revised edict violates the Religious Freedom Act and the First Amendment.
The religious exemption does not extend to companies owned and operated by people with religious or moral objections to providing contraception and abortifacients to their employees. Multiple lawsuits had been filed challenging the mandate prior to Friday’s announcement, and the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, representing Hobby Lobby in their law suit, asserts that companies like Hobby Lobby will still be forced to comply or face millions of dollars in fines. The Becket Fund released a statement saying “Today’s proposed rule does nothing to protect the religious liberty of millions of Americans. The rights of family businesses like Hobby Lobby are still being violated.” The government has claimed the right to decide who is allowed to have moral and religious objections and who is not. The Becket Fund believes that religion and morality are left to the church.
The purpose of the expansion of health insurance was to supply coverage for essential medical procedures. Contrary to the way it is often treated, sex is not essential for life, and neither is contraception. Providing such coverage raises insurance costs, interfering with the public’s ability to pay for procedures and products that are actually necessary. Contraception is relatively inexpensive and easy to acquire for those without moral objections, but everyone should be concerned with the government deciding who can and cannot conscientiously object. For both those who object to contraception and those who do not, refusing to grant the government the ability to trample private morality is worth more than free birth control.
