Freedom Of Whose Belief, Exactly?
We’ve seen a lot of business about birth control in the news recently. Some people think mandating insurance companies to pay for something that reduces the risk of cancer, regulates hormone problems, improves conditions such as anemia and ovarian cysts, and can be used as a contraceptive somehow impinges on the religious freedoms of organizations who are finicky about that “contraceptive” part. It’s a fair cop, I suppose—I understand why a Catholic University doesn’t want its insurance to be forced to cover something that goes against the Church’s beliefs.
On February 16, 2012, there was a congressional hearing that was “meant to be more broadly about religious freedom and not specifically about the contraception mandate in the Health Reform law”. In this hearing, however, the contraception mandate came up several times, and was viewed by the (male) witnesses on the panel as an attack on their religions. Despite this being a question of religious freedom, no one from the Catholic Health Association (which has women members and runs the Catholic hospitals this mandate would affect) or any Catholic Charity was invited. Darrell Issa’s reason for not allowing these witnesses—or one Sandra Fluke—was that “they were not members of the clergy.” Sorry, but shouldn’t non-clergy members of a religion still have a right to voice their opinion regarding their religious freedom?
But while we’re concerned with religious freedom (as we should be), and allowing the members of these religious organizations to act on their beliefs (which is their right), we don’t seem to be showing any concern for the beliefs of the women this reform will ultimately affect.