STATEMENT: CAP’s Donna Barry on SCOTUS Decision to Review Contraceptive Coverage Mandate

Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it will review two lower court cases related to the contraceptive coverage benefit in the Affordable Care Act. In response to the court’s decision to review the cases, Donna Barry, Director of the Women’s Health and Rights Program at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:

I look forward to the decision from the Supreme Court on these important cases and anticipate that it will treat women equally under the law and protect a woman’s right to take legal medication. The decision to use contraception should be made by a woman herself in consultation with a health care provider. The U.S. Constitution guarantees the right of religious freedom to all Americans but it does not grant religious freedom to for-profit corporations. To do so would permit employers to impose their moral views on their employees, setting a dangerous precedent that would be discriminatory towards women and do great harm to women’s health and religious freedom in this country.

Related resources from CAP: 

• Faith in Values: Business and Belief by Sally Steenland
• Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius: Crafting a Dangerous Precedent by Julia Mirabella and Sandhya Bathija
• Why Courts Matter: Preserving Religious Liberty