It’s bad enough when the opposing political party tries to kick holes in your legacy legislation. But now, President Barack Obama has a new critic of his Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Pope Francis, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
The pope took time off from his swing through the U.S. this week to drop by the Little Sisters of the Poor community in Washington, D.C., to show his support for their opposition to the birth control requirements of PPACA.
Those requirements have proved to a major bone of contention for religious groups and business owners with strong religious beliefs. Their challenges to having to provide birth control to plan members free of charge have been just as stubbornly fought by the Obama administration as part of its commitment to women’s health.
The Pope might not have a vote on the matter, should it come to that. But he’s got to be classified as one of the major persuaders on the planet.
The Pope’s PR team was quick to dispel any doubts about why the Holy Father had stopped by to chat with the Little Sisters. “This is a sign, obviously, of support for them,” the papal press office stated.
The Little Sisters are challenging the birth control portions of the law in court. They lost the most recent round, before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Poor though they may be, they appear to have financial backing from somewhere, since they are trying to get the case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Dan Cook
Dan Cook is a journalist and communications consultant based in Portland, OR. During his journalism career he has been a reporter and editor for a variety of media companies, including American Lawyer Media, BusinessWeek, Newhouse Newspapers, Knight-Ridder, Time Inc., and Reuters. He specializes in health care and insurance related coverage for BenefitsPRO.
