TBA Law Blog

TBA Law Blog

Court Rules on Contraceptive Exemption, Protections for Religious Employers

Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Jul 8, 2020
News Type: U.S. Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 today that the Trump administration had legal authority to allow private employers with moral or religious objections to opt out of providing birth control health insurance required under the Affordable Care Act. The majority opinion found that “conscience exemptions” for non-profit and for-profit employers were allowable based on the ACA and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The administration also had asked the justices to weigh in on the appropriateness of nationwide injunctions but the court did not address that issue. In a second decision issued today, the justices found that religious schools are immune from discrimination suits from teachers, expanding the scope of First Amendment safeguards for religious employers. The 7-2 decision broadens the so-called ministerial exception, a First Amendment doctrine that prohibits lawsuits by employees who are considered ministers due to the religious nature of their work. SCOTUSblog reports on both decisions.

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