Press call today: New HHS rule and Little Sisters of the Poor Becket President Mark Rienzi will discuss the new rule and how it will affect ongoing cases against the Little Sisters of the Poor

Call Audio Here

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new rule issued late yesterday by Health & Human Services (HHS) finalizes the interim religious exemption that the Little Sisters of the Poor received in October 2017. Becket will hold a press call at at 10 a.m. EST tomorrow to discuss this latest update and its effect on ongoing cases in California and Pennsylvania against the Little Sisters, an order of Catholic nuns who dedicate their lives to serving the elderly poor.

On October 6, 2017, HHS provided the Little Sisters and other religious non-profits an interim religious exemption from having to provide services such as the week-after pill in their employee healthcare plans against their religious beliefs. This new rule finalizes that exemption after HHS considered public comments. The new rule follows an Executive Order issued May 2017 and the 2016 unanimous Supreme Court decision protecting the Little Sisters in Zubik v. Burwell.  

What:
Press call to discuss the HHS mandate rule and the Little Sisters of the Poor

Who:
Mark Rienzi, president of Becket

When:
November 8, 2018, at 10 a.m. EST

Press Call Information:
888-670-9385 | Pin #: 54523
Email media@becketlaw.org with questions

The following statement may be attributed to Mark Rienzi, president of Becket: “For the last four years the Little Sisters have said that the government has other ways to provide services like the week-after pill without involving nuns. Today, at long last, the federal government finalized the rule providing a religious exemption from the HHS Mandate to the Little Sisters and other religious non-profits. This long unnecessary culture war is now almost over–all that is left is for state governments to admit that there are many ways to deliver these services without nuns, and the Little Sisters can return to serving the elderly poor in peace.”

For more information or to arrange an interview with a Becket attorney, contact Melinda Skea at media@becketlaw.org or 202-349-7224. Interviews can be arranged in English, Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

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Becket is a non-profit, public-interest law firm dedicated to protecting the free expression of all religious traditions and has a 100% win-rate before the United States Supreme Court. For over 20 years, it has successfully defended clients of all faiths, including Buddhists, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Native Americans, Sikhs, and Zoroastrians (read more here).