U.S. President Barack Obama, will announce, Friday, a plan appease religious employers who are opposing a rule, which would require them to provide women with access to birth control for free of charge.
Senior White House officials said the new plan would require insurance companies, where non-profit religious organizations have objections, to reach out to employees and offer the coverage directly. In that case, the organizations won't have to provide the coverage, pay for it or refer their employees to it.
In January, the Obama administration had announced that religion-affiliated employers would need to cover birth control as preventive care for women. Churches and houses of worship were exempt, but all affiliated organizations would need to comply with the rule by August 2013.
However, after Catholic churches and others strongly protested against the rule, officials decided to change it to appease them.
Though the Republicans are against the rule, the White House wants to implement it and has pointed to 28 states with similar laws, including eight, which doesn't have the religious exemption contained in the federal rule, as proof that providing employees free access to contraceptives is workable.
