Written by Don Byrd
On Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services released the final rule governing the contraceptive mandate in the Affordable Care Act. Specifically, the rule adopts the simplified definition of religious organizations proposed in February of that expands the net of organizations exempt from the mandate. The Administration declined to expand further the exemption.
You can read the final rules (pdf) here.
This step ends a process begun in August of 2011, when an interim final rule required most insurance plans to cover contraceptive services. Nearly 2 years later, the rule has gone through significant revision to address concerns of religious employers who object to the requirement as a matter of conscience. It is also the subject of dozens of lawsuits across the country that may ultimately lead to the Supreme Court deciding the definition of “religious employer.”
Stay tuned.
