UPDATED ACTION ALERT
Ask your Representative & Senators to support the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act and to ensure respect for the religious liberty &
conscience rights of all participants in our nation's health care system.
You are encouraged to personalize the action center's message
body.
Resources at Your Fingertips
Conscience Protection
What's New
NEW Bulletin Insert!
September/October: Religious Freedom
Pope Benedict XVI has said, "Any tendency to treat religion as a private matter must be resisted." We are called to pray and act to protect the freedom of religion.
Religious Freedom: Prayer and Action Are Necessary to Keep Our First Freedom First
- color (en español)
- black-and-white (en español)
Life and Liberty Prayer Initiatives
This past spring, the bishops urged
an intensification of prayer and fasting for religious freedom in our beloved
country. As the Year of Faith draws near, new resources are provided to help the faithful learn more about our courageous forbears in the faith and follow their example.
Rosary Novena for Life and Liberty
(full novena text available as a booklet [en español] or as a one-sided version [en español])
Daily Reflections for Rosary Novena from October 14 - October 22
- Sunday, October 14
- Monday, October 15
- Tuesday, October 16
- Wednesday, October 17
- Thursday, October 18
- Friday, October 19
- Saturday, October 20
- Sunday, October 21
- Monday, October 22
Learn more by reading our latest Life Issues Forum column, "Praying for Life & Liberty"! (en español)
- Bishops Urge Congress to Act on Religious Liberty Crisis in Health Care
Before Year's End - August 3, 2012. Cardinal DiNardo called on Congress
to address the crisis in health care sparked by the Obama
administration's contraceptive/sterilization coverage mandate in an
August 3 letter.
- Bishops Welcome Inclusion of
Conscience Provisions in House Appropriations Bill –
July 18, 2012
Cardinal DiNardo wrote a letter to the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS, urging the inclusion of provisions for conscience protection. Read his letter, and learn more about what provisions were included.
- Twelve Things Everyone Should Know About the Mandate
The proposed "accommodation" is not current rule, but a promise that comes due beyond the point of public accountability; the original rule was finalized "as is." Find out the rest of the twelve things you should know! - May 17, 2012
Bishops Call the Faithful to Get Informed, Advocate & Pray for Conscience Rights
Get Informed: NEW Bulletin Insert
The USCCB has been issuing a series of educational bulletin inserts in English and Spanish over the past several months. Visit our conscience protection resource page for past inserts, and find the latest insert below!September/October: Religious Freedom
Pope Benedict XVI has said "Any tendency to treat religion as a private matter must be resisted." We are called to pray and act to protect the freedom of religion.
- Religious Freedom: Prayer and Action Are Necessary to Keep Our First Freedom First
color version (en español)
black-and-white version (en español)
Advocate: UPDATED Action Alert
The message to Congress has been updated in light of the Senate's activity on the bill earlier this spring.Pray: NEW Religious Liberty & Conscience Protection Prayers
In light of multiple threats, our bishops are calling for a campaign of prayer & penance to restore religious liberty & conscience rights.
- Print out new FREE prayer resources for use in your home, parish, or school.
- Order sets of 100 prayer cards for religious liberty in English or Spanish.
On January 20, 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reaffirmed a rule forcing virtually all private health care plans to cover sterilization, abortion-inducing drugs, and contraception. These are listed among "preventive services for women" that all health plans will have to cover without co-pays or other cost-sharing -- regardless of whether the insurer, the employer or other plan sponsor, or even the woman herself objects to such coverage.
The exemption provided for "religious employers" was so narrow that it failed to cover the vast majority of faith-based organizations—including Catholic hospitals, universities, and charities—that help millions every year. Ironically, not even Jesus and his disciples would have qualified for the exemption, because it excludes those who mainly serve people of another faith.
On February 10, 2012, the Obama Administration made this rule final “without change”; delayed enforcement for a year against religious nonprofits that were still not exempted (our charities, hospitals, and colleges); and promised to develop more regulations to “accommodate” them by the end of that additional year. But that promised “accommodation” still forces them to pay for “services” that violate their religious convictions.
- The original rule that violated our religious liberty so severely has not been changed, but finalized.
- HHS has promised some kind of “accommodation,” but only after the election.
- The promised “accommodation”—even at its best—would still force our institutions to violate their beliefs.
- There is no exemption for objecting insurers, secular employers, for-profit religious employers, or individuals.
We urgently need legislation to correct the mandate’s threats to religious liberty and conscience rights. The Respect for Rights of Conscience Act has been introduced in Congress (H.R. 1179/S. 1467) to ensure that those who participate in the market for health insurance “retain the right to provide, purchase, or enroll in health coverage that is consistent with their religious beliefs and moral convictions.”
More than 400 Catholic leaders have called The open letter appeared as a full page ad
Get Informed & Take Action Now
- Write
to Congress urging support for the Respect for Rights
of Conscience Act (H.R. 1179, S. 1467).
- Bishops Urge Congress to Act on Religious Liberty Crisis in Health Care
Before Year's End - August 3, 2012. Cardinal DiNardo called on Congress
to address the crisis in health care sparked by the Obama
administration's contraceptive/sterilization coverage mandate in an
August 3 letter.
- Bishops Welcome
Inclusion of
Conscience Provisions in House Appropriations Bill –
July 18, 2012. Cardinal DiNardo wrote a letter
to the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS, urging the inclusion of
provisions for conscience protection. Read his letter,
and learn more about what provisions were included.
- Twelve Things Everyone Should Know About the Contraceptive Mandate: The proposed "accommodation" is not current rule, but a promise that
comes due beyond the point of public accountability; the original rule
was finalized "as is." Find out the rest of the twelve things you should
know! - May 17, 2012
- Our First, Most Cherished Liberty: A Statement on Religious Liberty by the Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty - April 12, 2012
- The New Federal Regulation on Coerced Abortion Payments: Under the new health care reform law, millions of American taxpayers will be forced to support abortion coverage in two ways. Our latest backgrounder explains how.
- Share this page with others so they can get informed & take action, too. Social media & e-mail options are found under "SHARE" at the upper right of this page -- and at the upper right corner of Cardinal Dolan's video.
- Some are concerned that the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act may be overly expansive. Find out why the Act simply preserves the freedom of conscience that existed prior to the mandate.- March 20, 2012
- Will contraception really be "free" under this coercive mandate? Read Richard Doerflinger's column "The High Costs of 'Free' Birth Control" to find out.
- There is a lot of confusion about what the HHS edict involves. For a quick summary, see our 2-page FAQ called The HHS Mandate for Contraception/Sterilization Coverage: An Attack on Rights of Conscience.
- For more information on the HHS mandate and its inadequate conscience protection, read our Preventive Services Backgrounder.
- Learn about some of the numerous federal laws and regulations that currently protect rights of conscientious objection.
- "White House Misrepresents Its Own Contraceptive Mandate" To justify its widely-criticized mandate
for contraception and sterilization coverage in private health plans, the Obama administration posted a set of false and misleading claims on the White House blog
(“Health Reform, Preventive Services, and Religious Institutions,”
February 1). This USCCB fact sheet quotes and responds to each claim
in turn.
Select News Releases/Statements
- Bishops Urge Congress to Act on Religious Liberty Crisis in Health Care
Before Year's End - August 3, 2012. Cardinal DiNardo called on Congress
to address the crisis in health care sparked by the Obama
administration's contraceptive/sterilization coverage mandate in an
August 3 letter.
- Bishops Welcome
Inclusion of
Conscience Provisions in House Appropriations Bill –
July 18, 2012. Cardinal DiNardo wrote a letter
to the House Subcommittee on Labor/HHS, urging the inclusion of
provisions for conscience protection. Read his letter,
and learn more about what provisions were included.
- Dioceses Gear Up For Fortnight For Freedom, June 21-July 4 - June 11, 2011
- Baltimore, Washington Liturgies To Bookend National Celebration Of Fortnight For Freedom - May 18, 2012
- USCCB Submits Comments on Proposed HHS Rulemaking, Urges Re-Opening of Final Rule Defining Mandate, Exemption - May 15, 2012 {Full Text of Comments}
- Bishops Issue Call to Action to Defend Religious Liberty - April 12, 2012
"United for Religious Freedom" -- March 14, 2012
The bishops on the USCCB's Administrative Committee thank "all who have stood firmly with us in our vigorous opposition to this unjust and illegal mandate", clarify what the mandate is and is not about, and call for a nationwide prayer campaign to restore conscience rights and religious freedom.Bishops Promise to Continue 'Vigorous Efforts' Against HHS Violations of Religious Freedom in Health Care Reform Mandate - March 14, 2012
- Cardinal Dolan Voices Dismay
at Handling by White House in Letter Updating Bishops on HHS Mandate
Controversy - March 2, 2012
- Senate Vote to Set Aside Conscience Act Marks Chance to Build Bipartisan Support, Seek Judicial Remedies for Religious Freedom - March 1, 2012
- HHS Mandate Creates Absurd Results, Bishop Lori Tells House Judiciary Committee - February 28, 2012
+ 'Without change' suddenly means 'with change'
+ ‘Choice’ means ‘force’
+ Liberalism becomes illiberal
+ Sterilization, contraception, abortifacients treated as if essential; but 'essential health benefits' are not
- Bishop Lori Tells Parable of the Kosher Deli and the Pork Mandate in Congressional Testimony - February 16, 2012
- Bishops Renew Call to Legislative Action on Religious Liberty - February 10, 2012
+ Regulatory changes limited and unclear
+ Rescission of mandate only complete solution
+ Continue urging passage of Respect for Rights of Conscience Act -
Cardinal-Designate Dolan Speaks Out Against HHS Rule, Calls For Action In New Web Video - January 20, 2012
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U.S. Bishops Vow to Fight HHS Edict - January 20, 2012
-
Cardinal Reaffirms Support for Respect for Rights of Conscience Act, Cites HHS Mandate as Cause for Urgency - September 7, 2011
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USCCB Urges Rescission of HHS Contraceptive Mandate,Criticizes 'Inexplicably Narrow' Definition of Religious Freedom - August 31, 2011
Additional Resources on Conscience Protection
Want to know why the bishops are fighting the HHS insurance
mandate? Need more material to help teach others - or prayers to join in
solidarity with our bishops?
The following resources are available
for use in a wide variety of settings, including universities &
schools, associations, parishes, RCIA programs, and families.
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