Supreme Court Issues Decision on the Affordable Care Act?ÇÖs Contraceptive Mandate

The U.S. Supreme Court?ÇÖs 5-4 decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. was announced yesterday. The Court held that the Affordable Care Act (the ?Ç£Act?Ç¥), which requires employers to provide their female employees with no-cost access to contraceptives, violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act as applied to certain employer-provided health plans. Importantly, the Court limited its ruling to closely-held corporations (under IRS rules, a corporation that is controlled by five or fewer individuals) with sincerely held religious beliefs relating to contraceptives.