Hobby Lobby says FDA decision bolsters company's birth control fight

Oklahoma City retailer argues that federal rules change strengthens its argument that it shouldn't be required to provide insurance for emergency contraception methods.
By Brianna Bailey Published: May 4, 2013

In court documents filed this week, Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. argues that the recent U.S. Food and Drug Administration decision to make the emergency contraceptive Plan B One-Step available without a prescription for anyone age 15 and older proves that the company should not have to cover the cost of the contraceptives for its employees.

Hobby Lobby and company founder David Green and his family argue in a letter to the court that the FDA's decision shows that access to the drug is not restricted by the Greens' religious objections to covering the drugs' cost.

“The FDA's decision confirms that the government has numerous less-restrictive ways of ensuring that women have broad access to emergency contraceptives without needing to penalize appellants (Hobby Lobby and the Green family) for their religious obligation to avoid paying for the drugs,” the letter said.

Easier access to emergency contraceptives speaks to a key issue in Hobby Lobby's legal battle against a health care mandate that requires the company to cover the cost of the drugs, said Kyle Duncan, general counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Freedom, which is representing the company in its lawsuit against the federal government.

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