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February 7th, 2012
05:02 PM ET
Battle escalates over Obama rule for contraception coverage at Catholic institutionsBy Dan Gilgoff and Lesa Jansen, CNN (CNN) - The battle over a new White House policy compelling Catholic institutions to cover contraception in health insurance plans continues to escalate, with Republican presidential candidates denouncing the rule, liberal groups spotlighting Catholic support for contraception, and the Obama administration vowing to confront religious concerns head on. "The president's interest is in making sure that … all women here have access to the same preventive care services,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday. “He is also concerned about and understands the religious concerns that have been raised,” Carney said, stressing that the White House would work to see if “the implementation of the policy can be done in a way that allays some of those concerns.” Earlier Tuesday, a senior adviser to President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign, David Axelrod, signaled that the president might be open to compromise on the issue.
“We certainly don’t want to abridge anyone’s religious freedoms,” Axelrod said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” “so we’re going to look for a way to move forward that both provides women with the preventative care that they need and respects the prerogatives of religious institutions.” But the dispute - spurred by a late January announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services that all employers, including Catholic hospitals and schools, will be required to offer free access to FDA-approved contraceptives like the birth control pill and Plan B (the so-called morning-after pill) through health insurance plans - shows no signs of dying down. ”Implementing the policy as is and allaying the concerns are mutually exclusive," Anthony Picarello, general counsel for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Tuesday. "If they want to allay concerns, they need to change the policy. Nothing less will do." Churches are exempt from the policy, which goes into effect August 1, and religious institutions that oppose contraception have been given a yearlong extension to comply. The Roman Catholic Church, which opposes the use of contraception, continued Tuesday to signal that it is intent on resisting the new policy. “The bishops aren’t going to stop until this is fixed, and that means pursuing every legal means available to them to fix it,” Picarello said. The flap was thrust further into the national political spotlight on Tuesday, as Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum attacked the new rule in his victory speech on a night that he swept primaries and caucuses in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado. The administration had told American Catholics that “you have a right to health care, but you will have the health care that we tell you you have to give your people, whether it’s against the teachings of your church or not,” Santorum said in his Missouri speech. “I never thought, as a first-generation American, whose parents and grandparents loved freedom and came here because they didn’t want the government telling them what to believe and how to believe … that we’d have a president of the United States who would roll over that and impose his secular values on the people of this country.” His GOP rival Mitt Romney has continually denounced the Health and Human Services rule in recent weeks. Speaking in Loveland, Colorado, on Tuesday, Romney said the rule was “in violation of the religious conscience of (Catholic) organizations.” “This kind of assault on religion will end if I am president of the United States,” he said. A survey released Tuesday by the Public Religion Research Institute found that Catholics are divided over whether religious colleges and hospitals should have to provide employees with health insurance that covers birth control at no cost. Forty-five percent of Catholic voters support such a requirement, while 52% oppose it. “Given how closely divided Catholic voters are over the requirement that religiously affiliated hospitals and colleges provide employees with health care plans that cover contraception,” said Daniel Cox, research director at the Public Religion Research Institute, “it seems unlikely that this issue will galvanize Catholics nationally and seriously undermine Obama's electoral prospects with this important religious constituency.” Planned Parenthood also released a survey on the rule Tuesday; it found that 53% of Catholics think that women employed by Catholic hospitals and universities should have the same rights to contraceptive coverage as other women. “The message to Democrats is that this is something all women deserve to have and that religion just shouldn’t be an issue with it,” said Tom Jensen, director of Public Policy Polling, which conducted the survey for Planned Parenthood. Over the past two weekends, the American Catholic hierarchy has distributed letters harshly condemning the Health and Human Services policy to be read at parishes nationwide during Mass. “We cannot – we will not – comply with this unjust law,” Kansas City, Kansas, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann wrote in a letter to parishes last weekend. “Our parents and grandparents did not come to these shores to help rebuild America’s cities and towns, its infrastructure and institutions, its enterprise and culture, only to have their posterity stripped of their God-given rights.” The rule has also drawn the ire of some influential evangelicals. “I'm not a Catholic but I stand in 100% solidarity with my brothers & sisters to practice their belief against govt pressure,” influential California-based pastor Rick Warren said in a tweet Tuesday night. “I'd go to jail rather than cave in to a govement mandate that violates what God commands us to do,” Warren tweeted in a separate message. “Would you?” - CNN's Brianna Keilar contributed to this report. |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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I will never vote for a demorat!!!!!
Noted. Thanks.
Then you are stupid. You should always vote for the best candidate. No matter what their affiliation. Don’t vote blind
OK. Glad you cleared that up. Now we know that you'd vote for somebody like Newt Gingrich, a lying adulterer, before you'd vote for a law-abiding Democrat who honors his marriage vows. Your moral values have been made clear. Thanks for sharing.
Have you considered not voting at all? Encourage your friends to refrain as well. Think of what a message you could be sending: "We consider ourselves unworthy of the sacrifices of those who made this country possible and shall refrain from voting". It would be so noble.
Perhaps you'd prefer Romney? you know, the governor who made the same mandate in Massachusetts as a result of Romneycare?
Dear PP, The Catholic Church does not operate on surveys or opinion polls, that's why it has been around so long. If you don't support the tenets of the Church either get used to them or leave. Your argument is invalid.
The church has been around so ‘long’ (not really) because it tends to kill anyone that disagrees.
I trust a person of faith, no matter how crazy, over an aetheist any time! At least those who believe in an afterlife have an accountability for their actions besides the ineffectiveness of law enforcement!
I'd rather have an atheist president who is moral for instrinsic purposes than someone claiming to do good in the name of some nonexistent god.
Osama bin Laden & the 9/11 hijackers thank you for your support.
My moral compas directs me more than some religious fanatics who feel that because they are following the word of god they can hurt, kill, condem, taunt, or persicute others who do not beleive the way I do. I take it you have no problem with the Westboro Church who pickits soldiers funerals because they are god fearing people. They must be right on track for you.
* sorry correction. "the way they do" Not I do.
Don't be a fool. Take a look around. Morality is not dependent on believing in imaginary sky daddies. Time will show that religion itself is immoral.
I had to laugh so hard at your very obvious delusions that I fell off my chair onto my dog who bit me on the nose. The damage you people do never ends does it?
how can anyone be against free birth control? no doubt it will reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies, and thus abortions! you would think catholics would be for less abortions...so strange, it boggles the mind.
Why G-d hasn't sent lightning and eliminate liberals boggles the mind.
@rdg18,
There are a number of perfectly reasonable explanations.
1) It agrees with them
2) It doesn't care one way or the other
3) It doesn't exist (my personal facorite)
And you would think that liberals, who pride themselves for speaking for the voiceless, would be against killing those who cannot even scream.
And to paraphrase George Carlin, why are evangelicals against homosexuals and against abortion? Here's an entire class of people guaranteed NEVER to have an abortion, and the Christians keep tossing them aside! You'd think they'd make natural allies.
@ JR
Babies can scream, so thanks for point out that ‘those voiceless’ are not babies.
Honestly, This and other cr@p like this are why I am no longer Catholic or even Christian.
good choice. welcome to the 21st century.
Good luck with that at judgment.
"senior adviser to President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign, David Axelrod, signaled that the president might be open to compromise on the issue.". NO COMPROMISE ! ! PHOCK OFF OBAMA.
Obama is doing this with his executive decision of being a little dictator. Does this ruling also go for the Muslims. I am not picking on Muslims but Obama seems to be apart of them. This is all to push his and Pelosi's Obama care.
Actually yes. If there is an Islomic aphiliated business that hires from the public sector they will ALSO have to provide the same Health Care requirements. This law has NOTHING to do with religion.
Hey, let's not leave out Willard Mitt Romney. Romneycare imposed the same requirement in MA. So of course now he's against the very policy he once favored.
The radical socialist religion-hating state of Georgia as well as more than a dozen other states have the same requirement. If you cover prescriptions, you have to cover contraception and religiously-affiliated hospitals don't get a pass. If this were such an issue of religious freedom, then why do many Catholic universities and hospitals already provide coverage for contraception for their employees?
More faux outrage. It really is the only thing conservatives know how to do these days...
Really?? That is the best you could come up with?? With all the information that has come out about this man over the years, "he seems to be part of them (muslims)". REALLY Guy???
Wow, Pete, are you a birther boy too?
separation of church and state. plain and simple. right or wrong that is the answer. obama is out of line.
Wrong. This isn’t a matter of separation. Obama is telling the church what to teach. Its telling hospitals they have to OFFER complete care to all women. That has nothing to do with yer jebus. Just because you slap a cross on something doesn’t mean it can ignore all law.
Actually this law has nothing to do with seperation of Church and state, it is about services Employers are required to provide to employees. Notice that actual CHURCHES are exempt. The government is perfectly fine on this one.
isn't*
Then so are Georgia and a number of other states, which have had the same rules in place for years with nary a peep from the Catholic Church or those who are now clutching their pearls. One of those states is MA. Guess whose administration put the rule in place there. Here's a hint, he's now denouncing the very policy he once supported-again....
Religious freedom does not mean freedom from all laws. Even a majority of Catholics support Obama's policy. Spare us the faux outrage.
I think you are a little lulu in the brain.
he's not forcing anyone to use contraception...he's just making it more available/affordable for those who do. what could you possibly find wrong with that?
What about the thousands of people that work in Catholic hospitals who are not catholic. We have no access to any kind of birth control. This was a major issue for our family.
I think you are mistaken on this as I don't think it comes into play. The administration isn't trying to force anyone to change their doctrine or beliefs. All they are doing is trying to make sure that religious organizations comply with the law of the land. No one is going to force any employee of a catholic organization to take birth control pills. That would have to be their own choice – which is actually in line with Catholic teaching. Overcoming the temptation of sin is more notable, at least according to the Bible, than those that are never exposed to temptation in the first place.
Separation of church and state is not a catch-all phrase. If someone in America cut off a kid's arm for stealing, as is condoned by certain religions, they WOULD be persecuted by law. When religion goes against basic human rights, such as healthcare, it loses all credibility. I'm not even going to go into how this would benefit Catholics in the long run by preventing abortions, as has been said on here already – like all organized religions, it's a huge crock full of conflicting dogma – but I'm sorry, crying separation of church and state just doesn't cut it on this one. The "righteous" seem to only want that separation when applied to them; injecting their beliefs into OUR secular system seems to be fair game.
Funny how NOW the Republicans, Religions, and Conservatives are concerned about separate of Church of State. Only when it negatively affects them should it be an issue....
We don't get free Tylenol or free insulin, why should the morning-after pill be more important than these??
Will Obama soon require free liposuction for those who have gluttony problems?
This man and his priorities are crazy.
I should not have to pay for the promiscuity and morning-after pills of other people, whether I am a Catholic, a Jew, or an atheist!
Obama has also managed to lie and to sneak abortion/birth control into ObamaCare, despite promises to Stupak and Executive Orders. How short does he think our memories are?
See A Tale of Two Presidents: Timothy & Barak:
http://sytereitz.com/2012/02/a-tale-of-two-presidents-timothy-barak/
I get free beta blockers as a preventative heart measurement from my health care. Have never got free birth controle, I have had to pay my deductable like everyone else for that. But I was able to get it offered on my insurance at a discounted rate because if prevents unwanted pregnancies.
I believe it does provide free paper bags to hyperventilating lunatics. May be helpful.
Why don't you get insulin free, or with a small co-pay? Many insurance plans do provide coverage for all prescriptions. OTC meds are another story.
You are living proof that intelligence CAN be compromised when put up against religious fables. Your cathaholic life style has corrupted your rational thinking and it is quite obvious when you look at the nonsense you have posted on your website. Catholic hospitals MUST be held to the same standards as other hospitals in the USA, that means if they must offer other options including birth control, or morning after pill than so be it. I think it is quite hypocritical of your religion to scream about religious intolerance, then refuse to see any other point of view. There. Are. No. Gods!
Agreed. Free insulin would make diabetics much better at controlling their disease, thus lowering the number of complications later in life, thus saving money for everyone!
makes so much more sense. Besides, why offer freely something you may, or may not need at all throughout your life, yet charge oodles on medications meant to keep people alive and healthy? Sure sounds messed up to me.
Prayer takes people away from actually working on real solutions to their problems.
Prayer wears out your clothes prematurely.
Prayer contributes to global warming through excess CO2 emissions.
Prayer fucks up your knees and your neck and your back.
Prayer can cause heart attacks, especially among the elderly.
Prayer reveals how stupid you are to the world.
Prayer exposes your backside to pervert priests.
Prayer prevents you from getting badly needed exercise.
Prayer makes you post really stupid shit.
Prayer makes you hoard cats.
Prayer makes you smell like kitty litter and leads you on to harder drugs.
Prayer wastes time.
don't worry, I'm still prating for you.
You should try this speech in Mecca.
And your post has what relevance to the article??? Are you trying to show us the Obama Administration's view? Maybe you are just trying to show us your disdain for the 1st amendment by utilizing the 1st amendment. Maybe you should read the entire Bill of Rights sometime. It may be worth your time instead of talking about kitty litter and it's relationship with people...better yet, maybe you should ensure that you cleaned up the dog crap in your apartment since it took a dump in there while it was begging to be walked as you were composing your exquisite post.
I will pray for you.
Obviously you don't believe in facts! Prayer has been proven to be more effective in some cases than modern day medice! Again you spew your ideology and hate, typical athiest!
"dudeuloose – Obviously you don't believe in facts! Prayer has been proven to be more effective in some cases than modern day medice! Again you spew your ideology and hate, typical athiest!"
What facts are these! Ones written and brought to you by some religious organization? Boy are you dim if you believe sitting on your butt talking to yourself can heal anything. Ha ha ha ha!
This article exposes the lies and ignorance rampant among the public about the Catholic church. Catholics are said to be brainwashed and lead by the nose by it's hierarchy. But this article makes a couple of things obvious: 1) Catholics are allowed to think for themselves and act according to their consciences, 2) the Church does not – NOT – burn these people at the stake nor excomunicate them. But there's a significant distinction between Catholics and the general public. The Church has a very exalted view of human life at all stages, and human secksuality. Catholics in the pew face the same life exigencies at everyone, but have to consider a higher standard. The average public Joe does not have to thing outside his pants.
So then, why do Catholics use birth control by same percentage as non-Catholics?
I am not religious and could spend all day writing about what I do not like about religion. The fact that government can trample on our rights, be it our second amendment or religion is scary. Government is getting too deep in our lives, people in power use that power to force their beliefs on the rest of us.
Now I know this rule might appeal to some, but if we allow government to trample on our freedoms and control our lives, one day government will start controlling something that is important to you, but by that time there will be nothing you can do, because you have given them the power to come into your lives.
How is this rule trampling your right to not use birth control?
No one is going to super-glue a condom on your wiener.
In Jim's case, I hope they do.
-Jim- This is a recording, please ignore the sentiments expressed this is only a recording. My opinions will change at the beep, or a drop of a hat.
@Jim
2012 Defense Authorization Bill allows for indefinite detainment on American citizens without trial.
The Patriot Act allows the American government to access your communications and financial records without a warrant.
You have all ready given them the power to come into your life.
Prayer changes things
Prayer changes lives!
`~~~The statistical studies from the nineteenth century and the three CCU studies on prayer are quite consistent with the fact that humanity is wasting a huge amount of time on a procedure that simply doesn’t work. Nonetheless, faith in prayer is so pervasive and deeply rooted, you can be sure believers will continue to devise future studies in a desperate effort to confirm their beliefs.~~"~~~
Prayer takes people away from actually working on real solutions to their problems.
Prayer wears out your clothes prematurely.
Prayer contributes to global warming through excess CO2 emissions.
Prayer fucks up your knees and your neck and your back.
Prayer reveals how stupid you are to the world.
Prayer prevents you from getting badly needed exercise.
Prayer makes you post really stupid shit.
Prayer makes you hoard cats.
Prayer makes you smell like kitty litter and leads you on to harder drugs.
Prayer wastes time.
Wouldn't wanna cut back on the supply of new young boys for your priests to molest. Oh, I know they don't all molest, the rest just cover for the ones that do!!!
Because allowing religion to control government worked out so well for Iran.
I can not and WILL NOT comply with this law. Consequences be damned.
The only way for you to personally not comply with this law is to be an executive of an Catholic-backed business who has sway over what insurance coverage that business will carry. So you fit that bill?
Seems to me that a lot of people don't have a clue what this decision is about but just want the opportunity to highlight how big their persecution complex is.
I can refuse to comply with the individual mandate and refuse health coverage. They may fine me, take away everything I own but they can never force me to follow this law. I could spend life in prison or be executed because of this but having the freedom to make my own decisions is a right I will not surrender to any governing body.
I refuse to comply. Let's see you make me.
"I could spend life in prison or be executed because of this" – Jonathan, that is the dumbest thing I have read on this blog in a long time, and the competition for that is FIERCE! Executed for not getting insurance? Right. That's some amazing brane-thunking ya dun there, cowboy.
What a drama queen! What a fop!
JON, YOU DON'T SEEM TO BE THE SHARPEST PENCIL IN THE DRAWER
You're a moron Jonathon!!! Who gives a rats ass what you wish to take part in?? No-one is forcing you to use your health benefits to purchase contraceptives and it is not your right EVER to speak for what other people should and shouldn't do with their personal bodies!!! Are you so damn blinded by your 2000 year old book of fiction to see that our world population is at a hefty 7 billion and is set to increase by another 2 billion in the next 8 years? Are you too dumb to understand that contraceptives do not only include abortion but more importantly the pill? The pill is not only used as birth control....the uses are numerous-it is known to help with osteoporosis, regulating menstrual cycles, helping prevent cystic breasts, balancing hormone levels (you wouldn't want a woman with imbalanced hormo9ne levels to go postal on you-would you?)? Keep your nose out of peoples private affairs. Don't accept the health benefits and please if you get sick with a deadly disease, don't come whining-keep in mind you were being a selfish loser because you let your childish beliefs get in the way. When you die, that is all there is...no afterlife has been evidenced to exist and thus one does not exist...you best enjoy the only life you are guaranteed of and suck it up-this is not your damn place to say.
liar prevails is a butt in canadian who is not even under our law. Who gives a rats ass what this canadian piece of sh it thinks about our people and our moral standards. You rock Jonathan. There's your sign
@CA: Birth control is not only available in the USA you hypocrite!!! You are not worthy of USA citizenship-there's your sign!
and no Jonathon is out of line but you wouldn't be expected to understand that. You want to talk about pieces of sh!t, look in the mirror-you and your other personality-just spewin' (you have admitted that it is you) are the epitome of what that is!! BTW: WE'RE STILL HERE and from this point forth you are as dead as the grass covered by the snow!
Jonathan the Canadian National Anthem is a prayer, upsets' liar 'prevails to have to stand and honor God before every hockey game, eh?
@just spewin'/CA (one in the same as you have well noted): you are so wrong and I stand for my country, a country that was founded over a hundred years before that anthem...the word 'god' is nothing more than a word...it has no pertinence in anything but the minds of the deluded. Our anthem is not pertinent to our country being a secular nation...as a fraud (using two aliases) you would not be expected to comprehend the basics of what a secular nation is...you are too far gone to come back now. If your only come back to good true people is to pick on their country, then you need to get a life and quickly-what a pathetic human you and your other personality are....all you prove to anyone is how frighteningly sad of a world this really is-they let people like you use computers and walk the streets.
Jonathan claims it is his right to not have insurance. He may have a point. But (there's always a but), why do I think that it will be the folks like Jonathan who will scream, curse, whine, and cry the loudest when his kid is critically injured and we tell him that his kid will die because he chose to not get insurance.
@ Jonathan
No one is forcing you to take the pill… so go ahead and ‘not comply’ lol. It will be about as effective as praying your gay away.
@TruthPrevails
You seem to have ready so deeply into my comments thats you actually believe you read something that wasn't there. No where did I ever attempt to put my beliefs onto someone else. In fact, I was doing to opposite and standing up for my right not to have someone elses put on me. I WILL not pay for something you believe is rightfully yours with money that is rightfully mine, especially when my beliefs demand that I refuse.
That is my First Amendment right and it supersedes any other. If you don't agree, you can kick and scream and threaten and name call all you want. The only way you can change my beliefs is to kill me and even then, it only serves to silence me.
Dear Mr. Obama,
Still waiting for your yes or no on this:
For your next news conference–
1. WARNING!!! WARNING!!! WARNING!!!
To all overse-xed h-o-mo-sapiens:
: The failures of the widely used birth "control" methods i.e. the Pill ( 8.7% failure rate) and male con-dom (17.4% failure rate) have led to the large rate of abortions and S-TDs in the USA. Men and women must either recognize their responsibilities by using the Pill or co-ndoms properly and/or use safer methods in order to reduce the epidemics of abortion and S-TDs.- Failure rate statistics provided by the Gut-tmacher Inst-itute.
Added information before making your next move:
from the CDC-2006
"Se-xually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain a major public health challenge in the United States. While substantial progress has been made in preventing, diagnosing, and treating certain S-TDs in recent years, CDC estimates that approximately 19 million new infections occur each year, almost half of them among young people ages 15 to 24.1 In addition to the physical and psy-ch-ological consequences of S-TDs, these diseases also exact a tremendous economic toll. Direct medical costs as-sociated with STDs in the United States are estimated at up to $14.7 billion annually in 2006 dollars."
And from:
Consumer Reports, January, 2012
"Yes, or-al se-x is se-x, and it can boost cancer risk-
Here's a crucial message for teens (and all se-xually active "post-teeners": Or-al se-x carries many of the same risks as va-ginal se-x, including human papilloma virus, or HPV. And HPV may now be overtaking tobacco as the leading cause of or-al cancers in America in people under age 50.
"Adolescents don’t think or-al se-x is something to worry about," said Bonnie Halpern-Felsher professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. "They view it as a way to have intimacy without having 's-ex.'"
Obviously, Planned Parenthood, parents and educational system have failed miserably on many fronts.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkgbKoKcntU&w=640&h=360]
My GOD it's a SIN. I can't I just can't FOR GOD's SAKE DON'T LISTEN
Listen to what?
What is sin to you, original poster?
Who knows, since it's a little d!ckfor posting under my name? I went to bed at 10.
You know man, you were really flying. All over the place and kind of batsh i t. Peace. Stay cool.