HHS Mandate Edition II

Joe Carter’s FAQ page for the HHS Mandate
Some excerpts,

What is this contraception mandate everyone keeps talking about?

As part of the universal health insurance reform passed in 2010 (often referred to as “Obamacare”), all group health plans must now provide—at no cost to the recipient—certain “preventive services.” The list of services includes sterilization, contraceptives, and abortifacient drugs.

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Doesn’t the mandate only apply to religious organizations that receive federal funding?

No. The mandate applies to religious employers even if they receive no federal funding.

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Isn’t this just a Catholic issue?

No. Although the Catholic Church has been the most vocal opponent of the mandate, many Protestant, Jewish, and Muslims also oppose the mandate. In fact, several evangelical leaders have called on evangelicals to stand with Catholics in civil disobedience to this law. Additionally, 300 academics and religious leaders—including TGC’s D.A. Carson and Justin Taylor—signed a statement by the Beckett Fund explaining why the mandate is “unacceptable.”

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Lies, damned lies and 98 percent of Catholic women

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6 more things everyone should know about the HHS Mandate
From the post,

1. The rule that created the uproar has not changed at all, but was finalized as is.

2. The rule leaves open the possibility that even exempt “religious employers” will be forced to cover sterilization.

3. The new “accommodation” is not a current rule, but a promise that comes due beyond the point of public accountability.

4. Even if the promises of “accommodation” are fulfilled entirely, religious charities, schools, and hospitals will still be forced to violate their beliefs.

5. The “accommodation” does not even purport to help objecting insurers, for-profit religious employers, secular employers, or individuals.

6. Beware of claims, especially by partisans, that the bishops are partisan.

The HHS Mandate Edition

Six Things Everyone Should Know About the HHS Mandate
Read the entire post,

1.The mandate does not exempt Catholic charities, schools, universities, or hospitals.

2.The mandate forces these institutions and others, against their conscience, to pay for things they consider immoral.

3.The mandate forces coverage of sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs and devices as well as contraception.

4.Catholics of all political persuasions are unified in their opposition to the mandate

5.Many other religious and secular people and groups have spoken out strongly against the mandate.

6.The federal mandate is much stricter than existing state mandates.

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Message from Chuck Colson
If the administration does not back down, religious liberty—as clearly articulated in the Constitution and in court cases—will be gravely impaired. And your organization, like mine, will face the question of civil disobedience.

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Manhattan Declaration – Sign it

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Tightening the Screws
From the article,

Perhaps the Government’s own attempt to kick this can down the road until after the elections will be cited as evidence. In its announcement of January 20, 2012, HHS stated that “birth control… is the most commonly taken drug in America by young and middle-aged women.” If contraception is already the most commonly taken drug in America, then it seems hardly necessary to shove a requirement to provide it down the throat of the Catholic Church and other religious organizations.

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National Petition to Stop HHS Mandate – Sign it

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Obama Tries to Spin His Way Out
From Mere Comments,

Abstinence for 15-year-olds is considered impossible–how in the world can they possibly control themselves? But obesity is something we can fix by teaching them to control their appetites for certain foods and eating veggies. What a country.