A federal judge ruled Monday night that the Hobby Lobby craft store chain must offer its 13,000 employees contraceptive coverage without a co-pay, as mandated by Obamacare.
Hobby Lobby sued to deny such coverage in September, citing conservative evangelical owner David Green’s personal religious objections to certain types of birth control that fall under Obamacare’s contraception mandate. In particular, the company sought to deny its employees coverage for the morning after pill, commonly known as Plan B.
But on Monday night, U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton denied the request in a 28-page ruling, pointing out that religious institutions have already been given exemptions from covering contraception, and that Hobby Lobby does not qualify since it is a private business:
“However, Hobby Lobby and Mardel [its partner company] are not religious organizations,” the ruling states. “Plaintiffs have not cited, and the court has not found, any case concluding that secular, for-profit corporations such as Hobby Lobby and Mardel have a constitutional right to the free exercise of religion.”
Hobby Lobby’s attorney said the companies’ owners, the Green family, plan to appeal.
“Every American, including family business owners like the Greens, should be free to live and do business according to their religious beliefs,” Kyle Duncan, general counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said in a statement.
Just last week, a different federal judge issued an injunction over the contraception mandate in Obamacare, siding with religious employers of a private company. But Judge Heaton’s assessment of the law is correct: While non-profit religious institutions are already exempt from the mandate, private businesses do not have the same exemption.
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Hobby Lobby sued to deny such coverage in September, citing conservative evangelical owner David Green’s personal religious objections to certain types of birth control that fall under Obamacare’s contraception mandate. In particular, the company sought to deny its employees coverage for the morning after pill, commonly known as Plan B.
But on Monday night, U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton denied the request in a 28-page ruling, pointing out that religious institutions have already been given exemptions from covering contraception, and that Hobby Lobby does not qualify since it is a private business:
“However, Hobby Lobby and Mardel [its partner company] are not religious organizations,” the ruling states. “Plaintiffs have not cited, and the court has not found, any case concluding that secular, for-profit corporations such as Hobby Lobby and Mardel have a constitutional right to the free exercise of religion.”
Hobby Lobby’s attorney said the companies’ owners, the Green family, plan to appeal.
“Every American, including family business owners like the Greens, should be free to live and do business according to their religious beliefs,” Kyle Duncan, general counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said in a statement.
Just last week, a different federal judge issued an injunction over the contraception mandate in Obamacare, siding with religious employers of a private company. But Judge Heaton’s assessment of the law is correct: While non-profit religious institutions are already exempt from the mandate, private businesses do not have the same exemption.
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Suck it.
Edited at 2012-11-20 04:45 pm (UTC)
THIS!
EAT IT, HOBBY LOBBY.
Though, I'm curious what their company policy is regarding their faith and whatnot, because if they don't set that in stone than they are misleading their employees and therefor have to get the fuck over it and pay up for the birth control.
Anyways, I'm not feeling well so I hope this all made sense. lol
They can not have in the employee handbook stating you must follow X Religion, that's illegal. they only way to skirt the laws is to have a small family business...IE only staffed by members of your family.
Ha.
i have a Boycott HL page liked on FB and we're all laughing it up over there. waiting for the influx of trolls to come scream at us since their precious hypocrites lost.
pay up, Hobby Lobby, and shove your hypocrisy up your ass.
What you really mean, is that every American, including family business owners like the Greens, should be free to impose their own religious beliefs on their employees, right?
I want to plaster this pretty much everywhere. If you want to operate a for profit business, open to the public, etc., you gotta play by the rules when it comes to employment law.
In the long run, it would probably save Hobby Lobby money by reducing the number of days lost (when you have a pregnant employee) and, in that regard, boost employee efficiency and productivity and profits.
I couldn't resist.
I wish I lived a life where that was my top prayer for the day (were I to believe in the Christian god).
But yeah, yay for this ruling!