A pair of decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court on July 8 handed a win to employers that desire to rely on religious convictions in their employment decisions.
One ruling affirms the “ministerial exception,” and the other allows private employers with moral or religious objections to birth control to legally exclude such coverage in their employer-sponsored health plans, even though coverage of contraception is mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Burton J. Fishman, an attorney with Fortney & Scott, LLC, in Washington, D.C., says it’s appropriate to view the two decisions together and consider how they may affect future challenges to the Court’s recent decision prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
