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SCOTUS sides with Albany diocese; decision overturns state court on health insurance requirements
Robert Gavin is reporting for the Times Union the United States Supreme Court November 1, issued a decision vacating a New York appellate court decision in a lawsuit brought by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany that challenged the state's mandate that required employers to offer abortion services as part of health insurance benefits. The diocese challenged a 2017 regulation that included what opponents argued was an excessively narrow religious exemption. “We are gratified and grateful that the Supreme Court has recognized the serious constitutional concerns over New York state’s heavy-handed abortion mandate on religious employers,” Bishop Edward Scharfenberger said in a statement. The bishop said he was “confident that ... the unconstitutional regulatory action taken by New York state will ultimately be completely overturned as incompatible with our country’s First Amendment guarantee of religious liberty.” The case will be reconsidered. The decision was credited to Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, members of the court's conservative majority. Read the full story in the Times Union.