Politics
JUST IN: Supreme Court Delivers Key Victory For Conservatives
In a unanimous move, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ordered New York’s highest court to reconsider its decision upholding a state mandate that forces religious employers to provide abortion coverage in their health insurance plans.
The Court’s unsigned order in Diocese of Albany v. Harris directs the New York Court of Appeals to reexamine the case in light of Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin, a recent ruling that reinforced constitutional protections for religious groups under the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause.
The ruling stems from a years-long legal battle involving a coalition of Catholic and Anglican nuns, dioceses, churches, and faith-based ministries. These organizations challenged New York’s 2017 abortion insurance mandate, arguing that it compelled them to violate their deeply held beliefs about the sanctity of life.
“When New York created this abortion mandate, it said it would protect religious groups,” said Lori Windham, a religious liberty attorney. “But religious ministries that serve all people, regardless of faith, were left out. Not even Jesus, Mother Teresa, or Mahatma Gandhi would qualify for New York’s stingy definition of religious freedom.”
The original New York law offered only a narrow exemption—limited to religious organizations that primarily employ and serve individuals of the same faith. That meant ministries that provide food, housing, and other essential services to the general public—including those of different faiths or none at all—were left with no protection.
In 2021, the Supreme Court had already asked New York courts to reconsider the mandate in light of Fulton v. Philadelphia, which held that the government cannot impose burdens on religious exercise unless it passes the highest level of constitutional scrutiny. But state judges refused to reverse their position, setting the stage for this second, more forceful rebuke from the nation’s highest court.
Today’s order makes clear that New York courts must now apply strict scrutiny—meaning the state must prove the abortion mandate serves a compelling interest and is narrowly tailored to achieve that interest without infringing religious freedoms. This mirrors the Court’s recent stance in the Wisconsin case, where justices ruled the government cannot favor some religious expressions while penalizing others.
“For the second time, the Supreme Court has kept alive efforts by nuns and religious organizations to serve all those in need, without being forced into paying for abortions,” Windham posted on X. “It’s time for New York to take the hint.”
The decision aligns with a growing trend at the Supreme Court toward broadening religious liberty. It’s part of a long arc that includes earlier victories for the Little Sisters of the Poor, whose decade-long legal battle against federal contraceptive mandates has repeatedly affirmed that religious groups cannot be coerced into violating their beliefs.
The New York Court of Appeals is now tasked with re-evaluating the mandate under the heightened legal standard. If it again sides with the state, the Supreme Court could take up the case once more—this time potentially issuing a broader ruling with national implications.
For now, the order represents a critical reprieve for religious ministries and a milestone moment for conservatives seeking to roll back government mandates on conscience grounds.
