By Jessica Dye
NEW YORK, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese
of New York can proceed with a lawsuit challenging a requirement
that employee healthcare plans cover contraceptives, a federal
judge ruled Wednesday.
The lawsuit is one of several brought by dozens of Catholic
institutions against the contraceptive provisions of President
Barack Obama's new healthcare law.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had said
the lawsuit was premature and asked the U.S. District Judge
Brian Cogan to dismiss it. Cogan denied that motion on
Wednesday, saying the archdiocese was already preparing to incur
millions of dollars in expenses in connection with the
requirement.
Federal courts across the United States are divided on the
question of whether it is too soon for religion-affiliated
employers and businesses to bring lawsuits challenging the
requirement, part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act. It requires
private employers offering group health plans to cover
preventative services, including contraception, but allows some
exemptions for religious employers.
In February, the Health Department announced a "temporary
safe harbor" that would stop enforcement of the requirement
until August 2013, while it developed regulations to accommodate
religious objections.
The finalized rule sparked more than 20 legal challenges,
including the one filed in Brooklyn federal court by the New
York archdiocese and four other Catholic-affiliated groups. The
New York archdiocese, one of the largest in the country, employs
more than 10,000 people, and about 9,000 Catholic and
non-Catholic employees are covered by its healthcare plan.
The archdiocese argued in court papers that even though it
is unclear what its legal obligations will be once the exemption
is fully outlined, it expects to incur nearly $200 million each
year in penalties if it is forced to comply with the coverage
requirement.
The department had argued it is too soon for the Catholic
groups to bring legal challenges to the requirement, since it is
not yet certain how, or if, it would harm them once the
exemption is fully fleshed out. But Cogan said that uncertainty
should not preclude groups like the archdiocese from challenging
what could prove to be an onerous burden on both their finances
and religious freedom rights.
"There is no 'Trust us, changes are coming' clause in the
Constitution," Cogan wrote.
Cogan dismissed claims from two additional plaintiffs -- the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre, New York, and the
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rockville Centre - saying
they had not proven they would be affected by the mandate.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services declined to comment on the pending litigation.
A spokesman for archdiocese said it was "noteworthy" that
the judge recognized that it is "facing current and imminent
harm from the government's contraception coverage mandate." A
spokesman for the Rockville Centre diocese said it was
evaluating its options.
The case is Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York et al v.
Sebelius, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of
New York, no. 12-2542.
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