Certiorari granted to review exemptions to Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate.
The US Supreme Court has granted certiorari to review Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania [Briefs] and Trump v. Pennsylvania [Briefs], which deal with the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that employers to provide female employees with health insurance that includes access to certain forms of birth control. In 2013, the government exempted churches and other religious institutions, and provided an “opt-out” process for religious nonprofits. In 2017, the government expanded the exemption to allow private employers with religious or moral objections to opt out.
The rulings now under review (1) affirmed a nationwide injunction of the 2017 rules, (2) held that the government lacked statutory authority under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to expand the exemption, (3) held that adopting the rules violated the Administrative Procedure Act, and (4) held that Little Sisters of the Poor lacked appellate standing.