Information and Action Memo for Parachurch Groups Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 29 April 2012

IRFA has written a guide for faith-based service organizations about the health insurance law’s contraceptives/abortifacients mandate and its narrow exemption and promised accommodation. The guide is designed to assist leaders in deciding how to respond to the mandate when making their health insurance decisions.  It includes information on how to comment on the promised accommodation and a protest letter to the HHS Secretary that leaders can sign.

Click here for the pdf file .

Faith-Based Services and the Contraceptives Mandate Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 14 February 2012

On February 10, 2012, President Obama promised modifications to the mandate that he said would better protect the religious freedom and conscience rights of faith-based service organizations. However, the only actual regulation enacted so far only exempts from the mandate churches, not religious charities, universities, hospitals, etc. The administration has provided little detail on a promised new regulation to protect parachurch ministries, but its central feature has been termed by many a “fig leaf.”  The mandate requires insurance plans with start dates of August 1, 2012, or later to include birth control, including abortion-inducing contraceptives and sterilization.  As of now, the only actual protection parachurch ministries have from this requirement is a year-long “safe harbor” from federal enforcement of the mandate for a subset of organizations.

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March Contraceptives Mandate Announcement: Ideas not Solutions Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 29 April 2012

On March 16th, the federal government released an "Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking" (ANPRM) on the controversial health-insurance contraceptives mandate with its very narrow exemption for religious organizations. The ANPRM was hailed by some as showing the administration’s solution to the religious freedom concerns of faith-based service organizations—which are not eligible for the exemption. In fact, the ANPRM is only a request for comments on a set of ideas—it contains no actual new regulations.

 

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Hosanna-Tabor: A Big Victory for Religious Freedom Print PDF

Written by IRFA | 20 January 2012

The US Supreme Court announced on January 11, 2012, a stunning victory for religious freedom.  Unlike most church-state decisions, this one was unanimous.  The nine justices together administered a sharp rebuff to the federal government, which had argued against the principle upheld by the Supreme Court.  That principle is the right of religious organizations to choose their own leaders.   Thus the decision vindicated the religious freedom of religious organizations—distinct from the usual focus on the religious rights of individuals.  And here the freedom of religious organizations was upheld against a claim of discrimination.

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ADVICE TO THE PRESIDENT

The federal faith-based initiative, extending back into the Clinton administration, has always been about improving the government's relationship with private organizations--secular and faith-based, large and small--that serve needy people and communities. It has involved many program innovations, organizational changes, and reforms of rules. At the center has always been action to ensure that faith-based organizations can collaborate with government programs without having first to suppress or hide their religious identity and faith-shaped practices.

President Barack Obama has promised an expanded and improved faith-based initiative. At a minimum, his initiative must not backtrack on the gains that have been made to ensure equal opportunity for faith-based organizations to participate in federally funded programs.

Equally important, the President should work with Congress to ensure that other federal rules and regulations--in areas that do not necessarily involve government funds, such as accreditation, employment rules, and tax-exempt status--are fair to faith-based organizations, safeguarding their religious identity and characteristics.

For the Coalition to Preserve Religious Freedom's advice to candidate Barack Obama,  go here .