Roman Catholic bishops in New York sued the state yesterday to overturn a new law that requires insurers to cover birth control and other women's health services, contending that it essentially forces Catholic institutions to endorse practices barred by the church.
"Such an outrageous law ought to alarm anyone who loves America and the freedoms for which it stands," the eight bishops said in a statement. "We cannot let this unprecedented intrusion on our religious rights go unchallenged."
Under the measure, which takes effect tomorrow, insurance plans that employers obtain for their workers must provide coverage for birth control. Government officials and advocacy groups that lobbied for the law said it would withstand the lawsuit, filed in State Supreme Court in Albany. They pointed out that a judge in California had already upheld a similar bill approved by the Legislature there.
The lawsuit moves the battle over the contraceptives requirement to a new venue after the bishops had failed to persuade the New York Legislature to carve a broad exemption for institutions sponsored by religious groups. The measure had been the subject of a spirited debate, with the Republican majority in the State Senate reluctant to impose a mandate that might run afoul of the church.
But last June, the Republicans, who have sought in recent years to present a more moderate image in an effort to attract more female voters, agreed to a compromise with the Democratic-led Assembly, which had championed the bill. Under the version approved, the state exempts employers only if their primary function is religious, most of the people they serve share that religion, and most of the people they employ also share that religion.
As a result, the exemption does not apply to Catholic hospitals or schools. In New York, the church says it operates 800 schools, 40 hospitals, 61 nursing homes and hundreds of social services agencies.
The bishops, who were joined in the lawsuit by several Protestant churches, said they supported aspects of the law that required coverage for mammograms and other women's health services. "We asked only for an exemption for religious reasons from the contraception portion of the mandate," they said. "However, our pleas for tolerance were ignored."
Gov. George E. Pataki said the lawsuit would fail. "It is an extremely important bill that will provide very important health benefits to women across New York State," Mr. Pataki said.
Assemblywoman Deborah J. Glick, a Manhattan Democrat who was the prime sponsor of the legislation, said, "I'm confident that the courts will find that the law perfectly balances the rights of individuals to make their personal health care decisions, and it does not infringe on the right of the church to limit those rights for people who work at institutions that are purely religious."