Under a new proposed rule, fewer employers would be able to decline to provide employees health care coverage for birth control. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) and the Departments of Labor and the Treasury issued the proposed rule on Jan. 30 to remove the moral exemption under Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations. The religious exemption would remain in place.

Under the ACA, most plans are required to offer coverage of birth control with no out-of-pocket cost. The extent to which employers object to that mandate under the moral exemption has been debated.

"Now more than ever, access to and coverage of birth control is critical as the Biden-Harris Administration works to help ensure women everywhere can get the contraception they need, when they need it, and—thanks to the ACA—with no out-of-pocket cost," said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. "Today's proposed rule works to ensure that the tens of millions of women across the country who have and will benefit from the ACA will be protected. It says to women across the country, we have your back."

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization in 2022 has placed a heightened importance on access to contraceptive services nationwide, the Biden administration's Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said in a press release. In Dobbs, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a 1973 decision that pre-empted state restrictions on abortion.

Experts pointed out there...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMigQFodHRwczovL3d3dy5zaHJtLm9yZ...