Arizona women’s health advocates are watching how the U.S. Supreme Court could rule Monday on the latest legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act. They hope the court will rule that birth control coverage should continue as a mandate under Obamacare.
The issue is whether for-profit corporations should be required to provide birth control as part of their insurance plans even if that goes against the owners’ religious beliefs. Religious nonprofits are exempted from the requirement but for-profit businesses are not.
Stephanie Toti is an attorney with the Center for Reproductive Rights in Arizona and she wants the court to uphold the law.
“We are very hopeful that the court will recognize the importance of contraception both to women’s health and to women’s ability to participate in the workforce and that the court will uphold the contraceptive mandate in the Affordable Care Act,” Toti said.
The Hobby Lobby Company is the lead plaintiff in the case. It has 500 arts and crafts stores in Arizona and other states. The owners are self-described conservative Christians who said birth control goes against their beliefs about creation of life.