HHS shift could protect workers’ conscience rights

When the Affordable Care Act forbids discrimination “on the basis of sex,” it covers biological sex only, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced on Friday. The finalized rule overturned an Obama-era redefinition of “sex” that included transgender identities and discrimination protection for women who have had abortions.

What does the rule mean, practically? The reversal is good news for the religious liberty of healthcare workers. The Obama administration’s definition of sex mandated that insurance companies cover gender transition surgeries and doctors and nurses carry them out despite conscientious objections. HHS proposed the revision in May 2019 after a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction against the gender identity requirement because it violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Also on Friday, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development suggested a rule change that would allow single-sex homeless shelters to define “sex” for themselves and decide whether to admit transgender individuals, the Daily Caller reported.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read my report in Liberties about the Trump administration’s efforts to expand conscience protections and states’ efforts to restrict them.