Obama Admin Drafting New Contraception Rule For Nonprofits

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to grant an emergency injunction to a college that objected to filling out the form required to opt out of the Obamacare contraception mandate, the Obama administration is working on an alternative for nonprofits that object to covering birth control.

Wheaton College said that filling out the form required to direct a third-party insurer to cover contraception for its employees would still violate its religious beliefs. The Supreme Court decided that Wheaton could instead write a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services objecting to contraception coverage.

The case is still pending in lower courts and the Supreme Court will likely take up the case in full eventually.

In the meantime, the Obama administration is working on a new rule to address Wheaton College’s concerns, according to the Huffington Post.

“This is part of ensuring that all women have access to contraception coverage,” a senior administration official told the Huffington Post. “The administration believes the accommodation is legally sound, but in light of the Supreme Court order regarding Wheaton College, the Departments intend to augment their regulations to provide an alternative way for objecting non-profit religious organizations to provide notification, while ensuring that enrollees in plans of such organizations receive separate coverage of contraceptive services without cost sharing.”

The administration has not yet worked out the details of the new rule, but the official told the Huffington Post that they will issue a new rule within the next month.