Obama overrides Hobby Lobby Supreme win, Little Sisters of the Poor lose

Am I the only one who recalls all of the thousands of waivers that were handed out in the beginning of the implementation of Obamacare? If you had the right connections for your business, no problem. We thought we had a win with Hobby Lobby at the Supreme Court. And we did .But guess what Obama just did with that damnable pen of his? Hobby Lobby Employees Will Get Birth Control Under A New Rule That Sidesteps Supreme Court’s Decision. Obama overrides the Supreme Court this past Friday. More on that after I get done with the Sisters and their sad plight. Apparently, the “Little Sisters of the Poor” did not escape the wrath either, and just lost another round with the Tenth Circuit, deeming them not religious enough. Take a look at this moving clip and you tell me if they are not religious enough.

The Little Sisters of the Poor have reiterated their commitment to following their conscience as they care for the poor and dying, following a federal appeals court ruling that they must obey the federal contraception mandate.

“As Little Sisters of the Poor, we simply cannot choose between our care for the elderly poor and our faith,” said Mother Provincial Sr. Loraine Marie Maguire.

“And we should not have to make that choice, because it violates our nation’s commitment to ensuring that people from diverse faiths can freely follow God’s calling in their lives. For over 175 years, we have served the neediest in society with love and dignity. All we ask is to be able to continue our religious vocation free from government intrusion.

Employers who fail to comply with the mandate face crippling penalties. In the case of the Little Sisters, the fines could amount to around $2.5 million a year, or about 40 percent of the $6 million the Sisters beg for annually to run their ministry.

Updated news story at Catholic News agency

The Little Sisters of the Poor are an international Roman Catholic Congregation of women Religious founded in 1839 by St. Jeanne Jugan. They operate homes in 31 countries, where they provide loving care for over 13,000 needy elderly persons.

Although the Little Sisters’ homes perform a religious ministry of caring for the elderly poor, they do not fall within the government’s narrow exemption for “religious employers.” Accordingly, beginning on January 1, the Little Sisters will face IRS fines unless they violate their religion by hiring an insurer to provide their employees with contraceptives, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs.

For more information, visit http://www.becketfund.org/littlesisters

Obama overrides Supreme Court decision.

On Friday, the Obama administration made its final ruling on how employers will handle birth control in their health insurance plans — they’ll provide it regardless of their moral beliefs. Birth control methods will be covered at no cost to employees, even if their employer objects.

For-profit companies have the option of writing a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) if they wish to object to coverage. Under the new rules, the HHS will notify a third-party insurance company, which will then provide the birth control coverage to the company’s female employee without infringing any additional cost onto the company itself.

The program was running smoothly until the Evangelical Christian owners of craft chain store Hobby Lobby famously objected to the mandate, claiming it violated their right to religious beliefs. On June 30, 2014 the Supreme Court sided with Hobby Lobby in an unprecedented decision, but the Obama administration put a conclusive response to the court’s ruling by overriding it.

Medical Daily

Filed under: Healthcare, Supreme Court Tagged: Obamacare