The Connecticut Catholic Conference welcomes the decision of the United States Supreme Court which upholds the position of the Hobby-Lobby Stores and the Conestoga Wood Specialties in their prolonged battle with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Court’s ruling supports the convictions of the two business owners who refused to abide by the HSS mandate based upon their religious beliefs. This ruling applies only to closely controlled businesses that object to the mandate based upon religious grounds, as the Court found that this mandate violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993.

Numerous court cases filed by religiously affiliated non-profits are yet to be determined. Therefore our efforts to protect our First Amendment right must continue. If you haven’t done so already, please voice your opposition to the mandate by calling President Obama at the White House at 202-456-1111 or U.S.Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Mathews Burwell at 202-205-5445. Let them know that the mandate is in violation of our First Amendment right to religious freedom.