January 16th, 2009

Reports The Hill:

The attorneys general of Connecticut and six other states filed suit in federal court Thursday seeking to block the implementation of a controversial Bush administration rule they say would limit women’s access to contraceptives.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued the regulation last month, saying it is needed to protect healthcare workers against discrimination by their employers if they decline to participate in abortions or other practices that violate their religious, moral or ethical beliefs.

…

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal (D) filed the lawsuit along with his counterparts in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Rhode Island in U.S. district court in Connecticut. They seek an immediate injunction against HHS implementing and enforcing the regulation.

“On his way out, the Bush administration has left a ticking legal time bomb set to explode literally the same day of the Inaugural and blow apart vital constitutional rights and women’s healthcare,” Blumenthal said on a conference call with reporters.

Read more on this issue at The Hill.  Also, check out the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to read how regional family planning organization Adagio Health is supporting the lawsuit:

“It behooves our national organization to do this,” said Richard Baird, president and chief executive officer for Adagio Health, an NFPRHA member. “All have to follow the law, and we will. But we’re hoping it doesn’t get to that.”