That Arizona bill was passed. Brian Fraga at the National Catholic Register reported on the passage May 23, 2012.
Note the framing in the headline and subhead:
Arizona Passes Exemption for Religious Employers
The law, signed by Gov. Jan Brewer, seeks to better protect religious liberty if federal ‘contraceptive mandate’ is struck down.
It’s just a matter of deciding who the subject is.
For obedient Catholics, it’s the Catholics. For most other people, it’s the women who are being forced to tell their employers why they use the birth control pill.
Planned Parenthood of Arizona and the American Civil Liberties Union said the legislation — which was initiated by the Diocese of Phoenix and known as House Bill 2625 — would enable companies to fire their employees for using contraception. Planned Parenthood said the law uses religion as the basis for “chipping away at women’s access to birth control.”
“House Bill 2625 is only the latest item in a number of bills to restrict women’s access to preventive health care, taking personal medical decisions away from women and handing them over to politicians,” said Bryan Howard, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Arizona.
Like that. Brian Fraga does let that subject say something.
Notice that the bill was initiated by a Diocese. Notice that it was the Diocese of Phoenix – that’s the one that wanted a woman at St Joseph’s Hospital to die rather than have an abortion, the one that excommunicated the nun who approved the lifesaving abortion.
The bill grants an exemption in Arizona’s contraceptive-coverage mandate for religiously affiliated employers, defined as entities whose articles of incorporation say that religious beliefs are central to their operating principles and for whom providing contraception could pose a moral conflict.
Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix was “tremendously supportive” of the measure, said diocesan spokesman Ronald Johnson. “This was a bill we initiated and was our top priority for the legislative session.” He and Tucson Bishop Gerald Kicanas issued a statement May 11 expressing gratitude for Brewer’s signature.
Olmsted is the bishop who tried to force Catholic Healthcare West to agree in writing never to perform such a lifesaving abortion again.
The bill was championed by the Arizona Catholic Conference, which has been pushing for an exemption since 2002, when the state began requiring birth-control coverage in employee health-insurance plans.
“It’s very rewarding for me, after all we’ve been through over the years,” said Ron Johnson, executive director of the Arizona Catholic Conference.
It’s very rewarding for them to force all of us to live by their terrible medieval misogynist rules.
RJW says
The law is in fact, allowing people to impose their religious culture on others, not protecting religious liberty, aparrently there’s no freedom from religion in the state.
Hoosier X says
It’s “freedom OF religion,” not “freedom FROM religion.”
And evolution is only a theory.
And it’s Adam and EVE not Adam and STEVE.
And the feller that smelt it, dealt it.
This been “Lectures in Conservative Law by Anton Scalia.”
robsmith says
This was their top priority. Their top priority.
smrnda says
Doesn’t requesting information about what you are taking a contraceptive for violate HIPAA?
On top of that, the idea that a for profit business can be ‘religious’ needs to get shit canned. Christians, JESUS HIMSELF said you could serve god or money, but not both. Don’t argue with your Jesus.