The chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee blasted the president’s self-styled “accommodation” of religious employers required under the Obamacare law to provide contraceptive services to employees in apparent violation of the Constititoin’s protection of religious liberty. “Under the President’s proposal,” explained Heritage’s Jennifer Marshall, “employers and employees will still bear the cost of paying for coverage of contraception, abortion-inducing drugs, and sterilization because insurance companies will simply pass on the cost of this ‘free’ service with higher premiums to the employer.” “It’s very chilling and very dangerous,” Rep. Tom Price …
The Department of Health and Human Services has announced it will not broaden the religious exemption in an Obamacare regulation that requires many religious employers to provide health insurance coverage for all FDA-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and certain education and counseling. This mandate is an attack on the religious freedom that so many Americans hold dear. Click here to join us right now for our “Lunch with Heritage” online chat. We are joined by Tom Messner and he is taking your questions about this Obamacare mandate and how it …
On January 20, U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius finalized regulations for preventive services under Obamacare that require religious institutions beyond churches to provide and pay for contraceptives, abortion-inducing drugs, and sterilization in their health coverage. The mandate violates the teachings and beliefs of many religious institutions and puts their ministries of service to millions at risk. It tramples religious liberty, and it has rightly offended many Americans. The quotations below from sources across the political spectrum are just a sampling of the outcry against the Obamacare …
It has not even been two years since Obamacare was enacted, and already the President’s health care law has taken another victim — the religious freedoms Americans hold dear, as reflected by the First Amendment. The Obama Administration recently reaffirmed a rule under Obamacare that requires many religious employers to provide health care coverage for all FDA-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and related education and counseling. On the grounds that certain FDA-approved contraceptive methods can sometimes “cause the demise of embryos both after and before uterine implantation,” many groups also …
Today the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision that resoundingly affirms the freedom of religious groups to choose their own ministers. Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC involved a lawsuit brought by an employee against a church-operated school. The employee alleged that her employment was terminated in violation of a federal anti-discrimination law. The question in this case was “whether the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment bar such an action when the employer is a religious group and the employee is one of …
As the year draws to a close, we take a look back at a few of the victories and challenges for religious liberty during the past 12 months and look forward to greater respect and protection for religious liberty in 2012. HHS “Preventive Service” Mandate In August, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a rule that forces nearly all private health care plans to include coverage for certain contraceptives and surgical sterilization. The mandate’s threat to religious freedom has already caused a stir in the nation’s capital …
Last week, a federal judge approved a settlement agreement that will help ensure that religious freedom is respected at the Houston National Cemetery and other national cemeteries around the country. Several veterans groups, represented by the Texas-based Liberty Institute, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) agreed to a consent decree that requires the VA to acknowledge the religious freedom rights of veterans’ groups and families and allow the inclusion of religious language and prayers in military burials. The rifle salute, the solemn playing of Taps, and the presentation …
Last week a federal appeals court heard arguments in an important religious freedom case known as Ward v. Wilbanks. The case illustrates how sexual orientation nondiscrimination policies can impose government burdens on religious and moral conscience and create serious civil society conflicts. Julea Ward was a student in the graduate counseling program at Eastern Michigan University. She claims that she was expelled from the program after she conscientiously objected to counseling a potential client seeking assistance regarding a homosexual relationship. According to Ward’s attorney: Rather than allow Julea to refer …
Earlier this week, the U.S. Supreme Court denied review in an important religious freedom case called Spencer v. World Vision. World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization that was sued by two former employees who alleged they had been fired for religious reasons. In general, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits religious-based employment decisions. However, Title VII expressly protects the freedom of religious organizations to staff on a religious basis. The question in the World Vision case involved the scope of the Title VII religious staffing freedom: Does …
On October 5, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a very important case concerning religious freedom. Several religious freedom cases have been in the news lately. Such cases should remind us to take seriously the nature of religion itself. Is religion something only to be preached about and celebrated in seminaries and worship services, or is it something to be practiced in daily life and work? Is religion solely private, or does it also take public form? Our assumptions about the nature of religion—assumptions about what it is …
