The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases challenging to the contraceptive mandate in the "Obamacare" health policy. In a conference on today, the justices decided to hear two cases in which employers have challenged the HHS mandate. The High Court chose to hear a case brought by Hobby Lobby, an Oklahoma firm; and another brought by Conestoga Wood Specialties of Pennsylvania. A federal appeals court had sustained the Hobby Lobby challenge, while a different court rejected a similar challenge by Conestoga. The split opinions in federal appeals courts, the dozens of challenges to the contraceptive mandate, and the need for a clear-cut decision on the federal health-care policy all weighed in favor of a Supreme Court hearing on the arguments. The key question to be resolved is whether the mandate violates the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 by requiring business owners to pay for services they consider morally objectionable. The High Court has already ruled that corporations should be treated as persons for purposes of their political activity. The Hobby Lobby and Conestoga cases will revolve around the issue of whether corporations should be free to operate according to the religious principles of the individuals who control them. If the Supreme Court finds that corporations can have religious principles, the Obama administration will be forced to show that the federal government’s interest in providing contraceptive coverage is sufficiently urgent to outweigh the ordinary demands of religious freedom. The Supreme Court will probably schedule arguments in the cases for the spring of 2014, with a decision likely by June. Either way it will be a landmark ruling on religious liberty with significant future ramifications.
Below is a round-up of articles published in the last couple hours.
U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Landmark Hobby Lobby Case - Beckett Fund
Supreme Court accepts Pa. Mennonite cabinetmakers’ challenge to abortion pill mandate - Alliance Defending Freedom
Supreme Court will take up new health law dispute - Associated Press
Supreme Court to decide Obamacare birth control mandate - Washington Times
Can a corporation have a religion?: Hobby Lobby challenge to contraception mandate heads to Supreme Court - Salon.com
The Supreme Court Prepares to Consider the Contraceptive Mandate - The Wire
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