
HARTFORD, CT — Connecticut officials stood on the steps of the state Supreme Court building to condemn the U.S. Supreme Court’s 7-2 decision that restricts access to contraception.
The court Wednesday upheld a Trump administration rule that allows employers with “sincere moral or religious objections” to deny their employees access to free contraceptive coverage.
“An employer’s personal beliefs and opinions should never interfere with a woman’s own personal health care decisions,” Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said.
The decision will deny no-cost contraceptive services for between 70,500 and 126,400 women, according to court documents.
The ruling was the result of President Donald Trump’s decision shortly after taking office to narrow the so-called contraceptive mandate of the Affordable Care Act. The ACA exempted only religious organizations like churches from the no-cost contraception requirement. The exemption was extended in 2014 in the Hobby Lobby lawsuit to include employers with moral objections.
The decision in that case triggered lawsuits in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The government then stood in for the Little Sisters of the Poor and took an appellate court decision against the religious order to the Supreme Court.
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said there’s no state that can protect women from this decision.
“No state, not even Connecticut , can protect itself from this decision because its effect is on the availability of vital medical health care for women. This medical care is time-sensitive, it is critical to women having control over their bodies, their futures and their families,” he said.
However, “this is not the end of the story and you can be assured that legally we will fight this battle,” Blumenthal said.
While the courtroom battle might be over for now, the ultimate impact of the decision could be shaped by the outcome of November’s presidential contest.
Blumenthal said elections matter and they have consequences.
“A president of the United States. A new president. Could pull this rule. Rescind it,” Blumenthal said.
Support authentic, locally owned and operated public service journalism!
Gov. Ned Lamont, who is not a lawyer, said, “I thought this was settled law. You know, the right to contraception. The right to choose. You know, I’m old. I thought this went back to when I was a kid. I thought this was established law.”
More Health Care News & Analysis
Medical Examining Board Fines Doctor $10,000
The state Medical Examining Board on Tuesday fined an Oxford doctor $10,000 for fraudulently using another doctor’s name and Drug Enforcement Agency registration number to prescribe controlled substances to a family member.
Keep reading
Clinical Trials With Immunotherapy Drugs Are Source Of Hope And Challenges In Treating Aggressive Breast Cancer
Joshalyn Mills of Branford and Nancy Witz of Kensington had the best possible results after being treated in clinical trials with immunotherapy drugs for aggressive breast cancer: Their tumors were eliminated. But while there are dramatic successes with immunotherapy drugs, there are also many failures, and researchers are trying to find out why in hopes…
Keep reading
Coalition of Health Insurers Questions Viability of Connecticut Partnership Plan
Members of Connecticut’s Health Care Future, a coalition of health insurers, hospitals, and businesses, are questioning whether Connecticut lawmakers have done enough this year to protect teachers and municipal employees from increases in health insurance premiums. “Despite repeated bailouts from taxpayers, the Connecticut Partnership Plan continues to be a fiscal Titanic that demonstrates why government-controlled health…
Keep reading
AG’s Tackle Mental Health Parity
Attorneys General in Connecticut and Rhode Island threw their support Monday behind a coalition of mental health advocacy groups asking a federal appeals court to revisit a recent ruling giving insurance companies more flexibility to deny mental health claims.
Keep reading
Budget Green Lights Psychedelic Therapies
Buried in the budget Gov. Ned Lamont signed this week is a provision that would create a pilot program to allow Connecticut to be the first-in-the-nation to study the impact of psychedelic drugs like psilocybin and MDMA on patients with depression and PTSD. The budget now creates a pilot program within the Department of Mental…
Keep reading
Officials Highlight Effort To Boost Mental Health Services For Kids
At a Hartford-based community provider Wednesday, Gov. Ned Lamont and a handful of his agency commissioners highlighted the expected impact of more than $100 million in recently passed funding aimed at increasing behavioral health services for Connecticut children. The governor appeared at The Village for Families and Children, a recipient of new state funding included…
Keep reading