You are here: / / THE “RELIGIOUS EMPLOYER” EXEMPTION FROM MANDATED INSURANCE...
, ,

THE “RELIGIOUS EMPLOYER” EXEMPTION FROM MANDATED INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR MEDICALLY NECESSARY ABORTIONS DOES NOT VIOLATE THE FREE EXERCISE CLAUSE (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Wilson, determined the US Supreme Court ruling in Fulton v Philadelphia, 593 US 522 (2021) did not render the “religious employer” exemption to the mandated insurance coverage for medically necessary abortions unconstitutional. The opinion is too detailed and comprehensive to fairly summarize here:

Plaintiffs, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany and a variety of entities ranging from churches to religiously affiliated organizations to a single individual, provide medical insurance plans to their employees. They have challenged a regulation promulgated by the Department of Financial Services as violative of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. The challenged regulation requires New York employer health insurance policies that provide hospital, surgical, or medical expense coverage to include coverage for medically necessary abortion services (see 11 NYCRR 52.16 [o] [1]). Their challenge is to the regulation’s exemption for “religious employers,” which is defined by four factors (see 11 NYCRR 52.2 [y]). Plaintiffs’ claim, in essence, is that the exemption is too narrow, such that the First Amendment rights of certain types of religiously affiliated employers are violated because they do not meet the terms of the exemption. * * *

Under Fulton, both the regulation itself and the criteria delineating a “religious employer” for the purposes of the exemption are generally applicable and do not violate the Free Exercise Clause. Neither the existence of the exemption in the regulation nor the defined criteria allow for “individualized exemptions” that are standardless and discretionary, nor do they allow for comparable secular conduct while discriminating against religious conduct. Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany v Vullo, 2024 NY Slip Op 02764, CtApp 5-21-24

Practice Point: The 2021 US Supreme Court ruling in Fulton v Philadelphia did not render the “religious exemption” regulation promulgated by the NYS Department of Financial Services unconstitutional. The regulation exempts certain religious employers from mandated insurance coverage for medically necessary abortions.

 

You might also like
Enhanced Sentencing for Second Child Sexual Assault Felony Offenders Is Required by Penal Law 70.07; Language in Criminal Procedure Law 400.19 Can Not Be Interpreted to Mean the People Can Decide Not to Seek the Enhanced Sentence
THE BREACH OF CONTRACT (FIRE INSURANCE POLICY) CAUSE OF ACTION ALLEGED IN THE COMPLAINT DID NOT GIVE NOTICE OF THE CLAIM THE CONTRACT SHOULD BE REFORMED BASED UPON MUTUAL MISTAKE; THEREFORE THE PLAINTIFF SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO CONFORM THE PLEADINGS TO THE PROOF AND THE JURY SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO CONSIDER WHETHER THE ENDORSEMENT REQUIRING A SPRINKLER SYSTEM ON THE INSURED PREMISES WAS INCLUDED IN THE POLICY BY MUTUAL MISTAKE (CT APP).
THE INDUSTRIAL CODE PROVISION WHICH GENERALLY PROHIBITS WORK IN AN AREA WHERE A WORKER CAN BE STRUCK BY EXCAVATION EQUIPMENT IS NOT SPECIFIC ENOUGH TO HOLD A CONSTRUCTION SITE OWNER VICARIOUSLY LIABLE PURSUANT TO LABOR LAW 241(6); PLAINTIFF WAS STRUCK BY AN EXCAVATOR WHICH ROTATED INTO HIM (CT APP)
Intent to Rob Sufficiently Proven by Circumstantial Evidence
THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION (DEC) MAY APPROVE MINING WHERE MINING IS OTHERWISE PROHIBITED IF THE MINING IS AN UNDISPUTED PRIOR NONCONFORMING USE (CT APP).
HUGE CONSTRUCTION CRANE DESTROYED IN SUPERSTORM SANDY NOT COVERED BY INSURANCE, CONTRACTOR’S TOOLS EXCLUSION APPLIED.
Defendant’s Limited Right to Seek the Advice of an Attorney Before Consenting to a Breathalyzer Test Was Violated When the Sheriff’s Department Administered the Test Without First Telling Defendant an Attorney Had Communicated with the Sheriff’s Department on Her Behalf
DEFENDANT HAD REQUESTED NEW COUNSEL AND ARGUED THE JUDGE DID NOT MAKE THE PROPER INQUIRY BEFORE DENYING THE REQUEST; DEFENDANT PLED GUILTY REPRESENTED BY HIS ORIGINAL COUNSEL; THE FOURTH DEPARTMENT RULED THE DEFENDANT “ABANDONED” HIS “INVOLUNTARY PLEA” ARGUMENT BY REMAINING REPRESENTED BY THE SAME ATTORNEY AT THE TIME OF THE PLEA; THE COURT OF APPEALS RULED DEFENDANT NEVER ABANDONED THE “INVOLUNTARY PLEA” ARGUMENT AND THE LINE OF FOURTH DEPARTMENT DECISIONS TO THE CONTRARY SHOULD NOT BE FOLLOWED (CT APP).

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

CITY RETIREES THREATENED WITH ELIMINATION OF THEIR EXISTING HEALTH INSURANCE... THE POLICE MAY STOP A VEHICLE IN THE EXERCISE OF THE “COMMUNITY CARETAKING”...