Written by Don Byrd
By a 17-13 vote, Arizona’s State Senate rejected a bill that would have allowed employers to refuse contraception coverage on religious grounds. The state is one of 26 that currently requires health plans to cover contraception. HB 2625 would have created an exemption from that requirement.
[Sen. Jerry] Lewis said he was concerned that the bill violated the rights of employees.
“I”m all for religious freedom, but we have to be fair in not prescribing rights to one group of individuals at the expense of others,” he said.
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The bill’s proponents said it protects the religious rights of employers who don’t want to provide insurance coverage for contraceptives because it violates their religious or moral beliefs.
Is it too early to dub 2012 the Year of Contraception in the world of religious freedom?
With 25 other states also requiring contraception coverage without all the fanfare of the Affordable Care Act’s mandate, look for religious liberty advocates in those other states to push for broad exemptions as well.
