President Trump has continued his three-year streak of dropping announcements that favor Christian conservatives on the multi-faith National Day of Prayer.
At Thursday's Rose Garden service, Trump announced a new Health and Human Services rule that expands protections for health care institutions who refuse to pay for or provide services they say violate their religious beliefs. The rule doubles down on so-called "conscience protections" Congress has established through the years and specifically mentions abortion, sterilization, and assisted suicide as procedures providers could avoid, The Washington Post reports.
Conservative groups have long pushed for expanded conscience protections, which they allow them to preserve their religious values and liberties. Yet the ACLU, as well as LGBT and women's advocacy groups, immediately decried the rules, saying they could let doctors refuse to treat LGBT people or provide other essential services. The National Women's Law Center even pledged to sue the administration for its decision.
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Similar conscience protections came into question when the Obama administration decided employers couldn't use religious beliefs to avoid covering employees' contraceptives. That decision was struck down in 2014's Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Supreme Court case.
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