Don't you simply love this threat by Sen. Marco Rubio* (R-Fla)?
On Friday the Department of Health and Human Services handed down the decision, sending shockwaves through religious circles that oppose the use of contraceptives. The rule exempts places of worship from providing such healthcare plans but does not make an exception for organizations like hospitals that are affiliated with religious institutions.Oh please, please do it, Marco!
To the end of repealing HHS’s decision, Rubio said he and other GOP senators plan to introduce legislation, The Religious Freedom Act of 2012, that would simply compel the administration to provide exemptions for employers that object to providing contraceptives on moral grounds.
Because I'm pretty sure that if we start using moral grounds for exemptions, employers can also refuse to cover Viagra if they frown upon adultery and four-hour boners. Christian Scientist employers can refuse to provide any health insurance whatsoever except for someone to pray over the patient. Jehova's Witnesses can refuse to cover blood transfusions. And all employers could argue that moral grounds make it impossible for them to offer coverage for anything which might have been caused by immoral lifestyles. Venereal diseases, addictions to drugs, tobacco and alcohol. And the list goes on and on.
Or so it would be if "morality" wasn't equated with only the use of "lady parts."
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*Rubio seems to be in the forefront of the new movement for Careless Sex:
When Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced legislation last week to repeal part of the Affordable Care Act requiring some religious institutions to offer their employees contraceptive services through their health insurance coverage, he found himself again at odds with two key constituencies: Catholics and Latinas/os.
Just a few weeks ago, the junior senator from Florida was the target of a campaign to raise awareness about his positions on immigration that are at odds with most Latinos. But, his latest policy proposal on birth control highlights yet another disconnection with two key constituencies this election year.
Rubio has always been known for his opposition to abortion, but he has started to heighten his involvement in reproductive health politics with a series of new statements. Last week, he told Politico: “I can tell you that none of my children were planned.”