The Religious Institute, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, have articulated some key points about faith-based support for contraceptive coverage in the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”).
People of faith and religious traditions support the birth control benefit
Key Points on Religion and Contraception
- The vast majority of faith traditions support responsible and intentional childbearing. The first denomination in the United States to go on record supporting contraception was in 1929—85 years ago. Today, more than 14 denominations officially support family planning. [See the Open Letter to Religious Leaders on Family Planning for more information, including quotable text.]
- Religious freedom should protect each person’s right to make healthcare decisions according to their own beliefs and conscience. No business owner should be able to impose their religious beliefs on their employees, which is exactly what the plaintiffs in this case want to do. The owners of Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood want to deny their workers access to health care services and take away their individual religious freedom. Employers do not have the right to impose their religious beliefs on employees, and corporations do not have religious freedom.
- More than 25 national faith-related organizations submitted an Amicus Curiae (“Friend of the Court”) brief supporting the contraceptive coverage rule, arguing that religious liberty should protect the rights of all individuals, not give employers the power to impose their beliefs on their employees.
- It is immoral to deny women life-saving health services. Excluding contraceptive coverage for women who need it but cannot afford it translates into coercive childbearing.
- To find out your faith tradition’s official position on contraception go to http://religiousinstitute.org/denominational-statements/