Philadelphia

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro Sues Trump Administration Over New Contraception Rules

At least three other states have sued the Trump administration since the new rules were announced Friday.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro joined a list of law enforcement officials from across the country and women's groups in filing a lawsuit Wednesday against the Trump administration over the new contraceptive rules.

The White House issued the new rules Friday that would broaden the moral and religious exemptions allowed for companies that seek to stop providing free birth-control to female employees. Hundreds of thousands of women receive free contraceptives through employers' insurance plans as part of a requirement in the Affordable Care Act.

Shapiro claims in the suit that the new rules violate the due process clause of the fifth amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“The federal government – under the direction of the Trump Administration – broke the law and undermined the health and economic independence of American women,” Shapiro said today at a news conference at a Planned Parenthood center in Philadelphia.

His lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, comes a day after Washington state's attorney general filed a lawsuit there that also challenges the new rules.

Previously, AGs in California and Massachusetts also sued to nullify the rules.

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