The Biden administration has decided to leave in place Trump-era guidelines that allow employers to opt out of birth control coverage over religious or moral objections, Politico reported.
Announced in a Federal Register notice on Monday, the move lets stand an existing rule that permits employers to cite “non-religious moral objections” to the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to cover contraception.
In 2018, the Trump administration expanded the conscience protections of employers so that they would not have to cover birth control in their employee coverage if the entity had a religious or moral objection.
In 2020 the Supreme Court agreed with Justice Clarence Thomas writing, “We hold that the [administration] had the authority to provide exemptions from the regulatory contraceptive requirements for employers with religious and conscientious objections.”
Earlier in the year, the Biden administration proposed a new set of rules aiming to boost coverage of certain birth control measures by requiring employers to expand their existing health coverage for employees.
The proposed plan sought to further reinforce issuers’ responsibility to cover Food and Drug Administration-approved birth control methods without cost sharing.
“The Biden-Harris administration trusts women to make decisions about their bodies. This is why we have prioritized ensuring access to safe, affordable contraception through job-based health coverage,” said Julie Su, acting secretary of labor, in October.
The dropping of the proposed changes walks back previous statements by administration officials who had promoted “access to healthcare” for every woman.
“The proposed rule we announce today would expand access to birth control at no additional cost for millions of consumers. Bottom line: women should have control over their personal healthcare decisions. And issuers and providers have an obligation to comply with the law,” added HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.
The Department of Health and Human Services said this week the rules were being withdrawn in order “to focus their time and resources on matters other than finalizing these rules.”
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