US Bishops request temporary fine exemption for Obamacare compliancy
(Vatican Radio) Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, president of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has asked U.S. President Barack Obama to temporarily
exempt religious institutions from crippling fines to be hefted if their insurance
plans exclude sterilization, abortion-inducing drugs and contraceptives.
In
a statement, the USCCB reports that Archbishop Kurtz also asked the President “to
consider that the U.S. Supreme Court already has agreed to hear two cases related
to the mandate created by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). At least
90 cases have been brought to federal courts by individuals and institutions objecting
to the imposition of the HHS mandate. Most of the decisions to date have favored those
bringing suit.”
Some Church-affiliated organizations obtained last-minute court
injunctions Tuesday December 31 that give them temporary exemptions from the law.
U.S.
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor granted one temporary injunction to Baltimore-based
Little Sisters of the Poor and Illinois-based Christian Brothers Services, plus related
entities.
Two different appeals courts granted stays in three other cases that
had been pending at the high court, filed by various organizations, including Catholic
University of America and non-profits in Michigan and Tennessee, according to a lawyer
representing the groups. The lower court action meant the Supreme Court did not need
to act in those cases.
Archbishop Kurtz’s request came as the Administration
has offered exemptions to numerous people and organizations having difficulty in implementing
the ACA. Individuals who faced penalties for not meeting deadlines for enrollment
have had deadlines extended. Businesses with 50 or more employees will not be fined
if they drop or otherwise do not offer health insurance at all for 2014. After 2014,
if these businesses do not offer a health insurance plan, they face a fine of $2,000
a year per employee.
Meanwhile, beginning as early as January 1, 2014, organizations
such as church-sponsored universities, hospitals and social services, face a fine
of $100 per day ($36,500 per year) per employee if they provide health coverage that
does not include contraceptives, including abortion-causing drugs, and sterilization.
“The
result is a regulation that harshly and disproportionately penalizes those seeking
to offer life-affirming health coverage in accord with the teachings of their faith,”
Archbishop Kurtz said. “The Administration’s flexibility in implementing the ACA has
not yet reached those who want only to exercise what has rightly been called our ‘First
Freedom’ under the Constitution.”
“I understand that legal issues in these
cases will ultimately be settled by the Supreme Court,” he added. “In the meantime,
however, many religious employers have not obtained the temporary relief they need
in time to avoid being subjected to the HHS mandate beginning January 1. I urge you,
therefore, to consider offering temporary relief from this mandate, as you have for
so many other individuals and groups facing other requirements under the ACA.” The
following is a copy of Archbishop Kurtz’s letter to the U.S. President:
Dear
Mr. President:
On behalf of the Catholic bishops of the United States, I wish
you and your family every blessing in this New Year. The bishops pray regularly that
you and our other public officials will have renewed strength to fulfill the duties
of your office with integrity, justice and compassion.
In this regard,
your Administration recently relaxed the rules governing individual health plans under
the Affordable Care Act, so Americans whose current plans have been canceled may claim
a “hardship exemption” from some requirements. This is the latest in a series of
actions to advance the ACA’s goal of maximizing health coverage, while minimizing
hardships to Americans as the Act is implemented. For example, the ACA exempts small
employers from the mandate to offer health coverage, and you have suspended this mandate
for all employers through 2014.
One category of Americans, however, has
been left out in the cold: Those who, due to moral and religious conviction, cannot
in good conscience comply with the HHS regulation requiring coverage of sterilization
and contraceptives. This mandate includes drugs and devices that can interfere with
the survival of a human being in the earliest stage of development, burdening religious
convictions on abortion as well as contraception. To date, at least 90 lawsuits representing
almost 300 plaintiffs have been filed to challenge this mandate, and the Supreme Court
has agreed to hear two of these cases in its current Term. Most lower courts addressing
the issue have found merit in the plaintiffs’ claims and granted at least temporary
relief, while some courts have denied relief or have yet to act.
Many
Catholic and other nonprofit institutions caring for those in need through education,
health care and other services are not exempt from the contraceptive mandate. For
reasons articulated by the courts, the Administration’s final rule of July 2013 does
not alleviate the burden on their religious freedom.
Please consider, then,
the result of your Administration’s current policies. In the coming year, no employer,
large or small, will be required to offer a health plan at all. Employers face no
penalty in the coming year (and only $2000 per employee afterwards) for canceling
coverage against their employees’ wishes, compelling them to seek individual coverage
on the open market. But an employer who chooses, out of charity and good will, to
provide and fully subsidize an excellent health plan for employees – but excludes
sterilization or any contraceptive drug or device – faces crippling fines of up to
$100 a day or $36,500 a year per employee. In effect, the government seems to be
telling employees that they are better off with no employer health plan at all than
with a plan that does not cover contraceptives. This is hard to reconcile with an
Act whose purpose is to bring us closer to universal coverage.
The result
is a regulation that harshly and disproportionately penalizes those seeking to offer
life-affirming health coverage in accord with the teachings of their faith. The Administration’s
flexibility in implementing the ACA has not yet reached those who want only to exercise
what has rightly been called our “First Freedom” under the Constitution.
I
understand that legal issues in these cases will ultimately be settled by the Supreme
Court. In the meantime, however, many religious employers have not obtained the temporary
relief they need in time to avoid being subjected to the HHS mandate beginning January
1. I urge you, therefore, to consider offering temporary relief from this mandate,
as you have for so many other individuals and groups facing other requirements under
the ACA.
Thank you for considering this urgent plea. Again, be assured
of my continued prayers in the coming year as you seek to serve the American people.
Sincerely yours,
Most Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz, D.D. Archbishop
of Louisville President, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops