Court Rules Against Religious Charities in Contraception Case

The New York Court of Appeals ruled that a state law that requires employers to provide health-insurance coverage for prescription birth control does apply to social-service groups led by churches and by other religious institutions, reports The Associated Press.

Institutions with a mainly religious mission, some of which consider contraception a sin, are exempt from the law. Ten charities, eight of which are associated with the Catholic Church and two with the Baptist Church, had sued for an exemption from the law. The court, in denying the exemption, ruled that the groups were mainly social-services agencies.

Dennis Poust, a spokesman for the New York Catholic Conference, says the group may appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. “We think this has never really been about contraception. We think it was to target the church and open the door for coverage of abortion.”