Trump administration finalizes birth-control opt out

In this photo from Friday, Aug. 26, 2016, a one-month dosage of hormonal birth control pills is displayed in Sacramento, Calif. President Donald Trump is allowing more employers to opt out of providing no-cost birth control to women by claiming religious or moral objections.

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is finalizing an exemption that allows some employers with religious or moral objections to opt out of providing no-cost birth control for women workers.

The new regulations were announced Wednesday, a day after Republicans retained their Senate majority. They apply mainly to nonprofits and small businesses. Major companies whose stock is sold to investors are not eligible for the opt-out.

Under former President Barack Obama’s health care law, most employers must cover birth control at no charge as a preventive service for women.

Separately, the Trump administration also proposed tighter rules on Affordable Care Act plans that cover abortion.

Administration policies on women’s health are expected to get scrutiny starting next year from the new Democratic majority in the House.

More health news

See more coverage of health-related issues, health care, fitness, and how to live a healthy and active life on the LJWorld Health homepage.

COMMENTS

Welcome to the new LJWorld.com. Our old commenting system has been replaced with Facebook Comments. There is no longer a separate username and password login step. If you are already signed into Facebook within your browser, you will be able to comment. If you do not have a Facebook account and do not wish to create one, you will not be able to comment on stories.