The Catholic Health Association has added its voice to a protest begun last month by 43 other Catholic organizations in a rebuttal of the Obama administration's requirement for these institutions to provide coverage for contraceptives, abortifacients and sterilization in their health plans.

Sr. Carol Keehan, CEO of the CHA sent a letter to Marilyn Tavenner, Acting Director of the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services urging "at the very least to expand the definition of religious employer using the principles behind Section 414(e) of the Internal Revenue Code to make clear that religious employers, including Catholic hospitals and health care organizations, are exempt from the contraceptive mandate."

As it stands, the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking ruling of March 21 mandates religious institutions like the CHA either cover contraceptives (including the abortifacient "ella") in their health plans or allow for the insurance companies with whom the CHA contracts to cover employees.

From the letter:

...we continue to believe that it is imperative for the Administration to abandon the narrow definition of "religious employer" and instead use an expanded definition to exempt from the contraceptive mandate not only churches, but also Catholic hospitals, health care organizations and other ministries of the Church [2].

A link to the original letter can be found here.

Keehan proposes a way to provide contraceptive coverage while still allowing for conscience protection for employers who object to providing it in their health plans.

This positive development is at least moving in the right direction, that is, away from provisions in Obamacare which flout the First Amendment and the right to religious liberty.

We'll have to wait and see if it means anything to the rogue regime which instituted the mandate in the first place.

Read more Ann Kane at Potter Williams Report