CATHOLIC COUNTER-ATTACK ON NERO OBAMA...

[Christian]

Catholic dioceses, institutions sue over contraception rule
May 21, 2012 12:13 PM

(CBS/AP) NEW YORK -- Dozens of Roman Catholic dioceses, schools and
other institutions sued the Obama administration Monday over a
government mandate requiring most employers to provide birth control
coverage as part of their employee health plans.

The lawsuits filed in federal courts around the country represent the
largest push against the mandate since President Barack Obama
announced the policy in January. Among those suing are the University
of Notre Dame, the Archdioceses of Washington, New York and Michigan,
and the Catholic University of America.

"We have tried negotiation with the administration and legislation
with the Congress, and we'll keep at it, but there's still no fix,"
said New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops. "Time is running out, and our valuable ministries
and fundamental rights hang in the balance, so we have to resort to
the courts now."

The U.S. Health and Human Services Department adopted the rule to
improve health care for women. Last year, an advisory panel from the
Institute of Medicine, which advises the federal government,
recommended including birth control on the list of covered services,
partly because it promotes maternal and child health by allowing women
to space their pregnancies.

However, faith leaders from across religious traditions protested,
saying the mandate violates religious freedom. The original rule
includes a religious exemption that allows houses of worship to opt-
out of the mandate, but keeps the requirement in place for religiously
affiliated charities.

In response to the political furor, Obama offered to soften the rule
so that insurers would pay for birth control instead of religious
groups. However, the bishops and others have said that the
accommodation doesn't go far enough.

Health and Human Services spokeswoman Erin Shields said Monday that
the department does not comment on pending litigation.

In a statement, Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards decried
the lawsuit as an attempt to restrict women's access to low-cost birth
control.

"Access to birth control is a critical health and economic concern for
American women," Richards said. "It is unbelievable that in the year
2012 we have to fight for access to birth control. Yet this lawsuit
would make it harder for millions of women to get birth control.
Insurance companies should cover birth control just like any other
preventive prescription, as the independent Institute of Medicine
(IOM) recommended."

Notre Dame's president, the Rev. John Jenkins, said in a statement
that the school decided to sue "after much deliberation, discussion
and efforts to find a solution acceptable to the various parties." The
university argued that the mandate violates religious freedom by
requiring many religiously affiliated hospitals, schools and charities
to comply.

"We do not seek to impose our religious beliefs on others," Jenkins
said. "We simply ask that the government not impose its values on the
university when those values conflict with our religious teachings."

Other religious colleges and institutions have already filed federal
suit over the mandate, but observers had been closely watching for
Notre Dame's next step.
The university, among the best-known Catholic schools in the country,
has indicated past willingness to work with President Barack Obama,
despite their differences with him on abortion and other issues. Notre
Dame came under unprecedented criticism from U.S. bishops and others
in 2009 for inviting Obama, who supports abortion rights, as
commencement speaker and presenting him with an honorary law degree.

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