Litigation Seeks To Turn Back The Clock On Contraception

June 7 marks the 47th anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, the Supreme Court ruling that determined the Constitution contains a fundamental right to privacy that includes the use of contraception. But almost half a century after that landmark decision, the courts are once again embroiled in litigation about contraception.

In 1965 the question was whether the government could ban the sale of contraception to married couples. Today the question is whether the government can require religiously affiliated employers to cover contraception in employee health plans.

That’s progress. Contraception has come a long way from being classified as a contraband possession—and is now a preventive health service deemed so vital that the Department of Health and Human Services has required that starting in August it be covered by all health plans without charging co-pays or other costs to the patient. It has gone from something used furtively (“Mad Men” fans will remember Peggy being lectured by her doctor not to become a “strumpet” after going on the pill) to something that enjoys widespread public support and that has been used by 99 percent of sexually active women.

This near-universal acceptance is what makes the current wave of lawsuits and legislation challenging the regulation so surprising and has most people asking, “What’s the big deal?” The big deal, according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops—who have spearheaded the charge against the Health and Human Services Department’s regulation on contraceptive coverage—is that requiring employers to cover contraception violates the religious liberty of those who object to birth control.

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Full article here: http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/06/07/496179/griswold-anniversary-contraception-access/