Have Catholics Beat The Obama Healthcare Bill?

There is apparently some good news circulating the news networks that Obama may be due to buckle and make changes to the healthcare bill. That's the same healthcare bill which currently will force employers to provide contraception regardless of their religious beliefs.

Rumours are that the bill will be changed so that “religious institutions would still be required to cover contraception as part of any health care plan they offer to their employees. But they also will be offered a veritable opt-out clause. If they determine that the requirement violates their religious sensibilities, the burden would then fall on the insurance company to cover the cost.

That insurance company would be required to inform the recipient of their benefits package in addition to paying for the contraception. This effectively removes religious institutions from any role in the process, which the White House hopes will mute the criticism it has received.”[i]

Let’s see what happens. If US Catholics are able to force this change to the bill, it will be a victory for Catholics and should provide motivation, to Catholics all around the world, that we can defeat immoral legislation and defend our Catholic beliefs, if we are prepared to stand together as Catholics.

If this is a victory, even if only a partial victory, it should also be seen as a slap in the face for those ‘Catholic’ newspapers, like the National Catholic Reporter, who ran so many reports in support of the Obama healthcare bill. At the same time it should also leave those ‘Catholic’ newspapers, which kept completely silent on this important subject and gave it no coverage at all, hanging their heads in complete and utter shame. Shame on you, allegedly ‘Catholic’ newspaper, for not turning up when fellow Catholics needed your support!

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[i] Huffington Post, Obama Birth Control Compromise In Works, Feb 10, 2012