Most church-affiliated organizations will be required to offer their workers coverage of birth control as part of their health plans, the Obama administration announced Friday, but they can get more time than other employers to comply.
The decision came as a bitter disappointment to organizations ranging from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to the National Association of Evangelicals, which had lobbied hard for a broad exemption for employers that oppose birth control on religious grounds.
This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights,” said Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, head of a system of 13 Catholic hospitals in Indiana and Illinois.
The rule, which was first announced last summer and which has drawn more than 200,000 comments, requires private insurance not merely to include birth control, but to do so without out-of-pocket charges. It will take effect beginning Aug. 1, as plans renew.
From the beginning, the rule exempted employers such as churches whose primary purpose is to inculcate religious beliefs and that mainly employ and serve individuals who share those beliefs. Religious advocates argued that this definition was too narrow, excluding a wide range of church-affiliated universities, hospitals and schools.
Sister Jane Marie Klein, chairwoman of the board of Franciscan Alliance Inc., a system of 13 Catholic hospitals, said, "This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and 1st Amendment rights."
Women's groups praised the administration. The decision "means that millions of women who would otherwise pay $15 to $50 a month will have access to affordable birth control, helping to save hundreds of dollars each year," said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood.
Jon O'Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, praised the administration's move, saying that "the bishops pulled out all the stops in their campaign" against the requirement. "This was a victory for common sense and scientific advice in the interests of the common good," he added.
The new rule stems from a provision in President Obama's healthcare law that aims to increase workers' use of preventive services by requiring that the services be provided at no cost.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, in announcing the final rule Friday, said that the decision "strikes the appropriate balance between respecting religious freedom and increasing access to important preventive services."
The decision came as a bitter disappointment to organizations ranging from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to the National Association of Evangelicals, which had lobbied hard for a broad exemption for employers that oppose birth control on religious grounds.
This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights,” said Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, head of a system of 13 Catholic hospitals in Indiana and Illinois.
The rule, which was first announced last summer and which has drawn more than 200,000 comments, requires private insurance not merely to include birth control, but to do so without out-of-pocket charges. It will take effect beginning Aug. 1, as plans renew.
From the beginning, the rule exempted employers such as churches whose primary purpose is to inculcate religious beliefs and that mainly employ and serve individuals who share those beliefs. Religious advocates argued that this definition was too narrow, excluding a wide range of church-affiliated universities, hospitals and schools.
Sister Jane Marie Klein, chairwoman of the board of Franciscan Alliance Inc., a system of 13 Catholic hospitals, said, "This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and 1st Amendment rights."
Women's groups praised the administration. The decision "means that millions of women who would otherwise pay $15 to $50 a month will have access to affordable birth control, helping to save hundreds of dollars each year," said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood.
Jon O'Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, praised the administration's move, saying that "the bishops pulled out all the stops in their campaign" against the requirement. "This was a victory for common sense and scientific advice in the interests of the common good," he added.
The new rule stems from a provision in President Obama's healthcare law that aims to increase workers' use of preventive services by requiring that the services be provided at no cost.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, in announcing the final rule Friday, said that the decision "strikes the appropriate balance between respecting religious freedom and increasing access to important preventive services."
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