After the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that the Little Sisters of the Poor do not have to offer contraception in their healthcare, former Vice President Joe Biden said he would effectively undo the decision if elected president.
“If I am elected, I will restore the Obama-Biden policy that existed before the Hobby Lobby ruling: providing an exemption for houses of worship and an accommodation for nonprofit organizations with religious missions,” Biden said in a statement late Wednesday night.
The case, which is one of several that the Catholic order of nuns have faced before the court, concerned whether or not the Trump administration had the authority to make an exception for the group from the Obama-era Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate. The act already offered exceptions for churches, but ignited controversy, even before it was passed, over its otherwise narrow opt-outs.
In his statement, Biden defended the legacy of the Affordable Care Act, former President Barack Obama’s signature achievement, which President Trump has long sought to discredit, particularly through his support of the Little Sisters.
Biden said that the only way to restore contraception access to people who worked at places such as the Little Sisters was to elect him president.
“Health care is a right that should not be dependent on race, gender, income or zip code,” he said.
Religious liberty advocates warned only hours after the case was decided that it was not the final word on the issue. Ryan Anderson, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, noted that if Biden (or any future Democrat is elected), it is likely that the Little Sisters will find themselves “back in court.”
Several Supreme Court justices in their concurring opinions also cautioned that the Little Sisters were not yet finished with legal battles, with both Justices Elena Kagan and Samuel Alito speculating that the strength of the court’s decision will not outlive the Trump administration.
