|
|
WINDY CITY TIMES
|
|---|
|
|
|
Texas judge: Mandated PrEP coverage violates religious freedom
2022-09-08
|
|
This article shared 1024 times since Thu Sep 8, 2022
|
|
On Sept. 7, a federal judge in Texas (U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor) ruled that the government cannot force a Christian-owned company to cover HIV preventative medication (HIV PrEP) because it violates their religious freedom under federal law, according to various media outlets.
HIV PrEP—which is more than 90% effective in preventing the transmission of HIV—is recommended for adults who are at high risk of getting HIV, which includes men who have sex with other men, Axios reported.
The plaintiffs in the case—six individuals and two Christian-owned businesses, Braidwood Management and Kelley Orthodontics—argued that they should not be mandated to offer coverage of HIV PrEP because they did not want to encourage "homosexual behavior."
Under the Affordable Care Act, most health insurance plans must cover certain recommended preventive services, including HIV testing for people aged 15-65 and HIV PrEP for adults who are at high risk of getting HIV.
The Los Angeles LGBT Center was among the entities protesting the ruling. In a statement Windy City Times received, the center said it "categorically condemned" the decision. It added, "While the ruling is incredibly disturbing, we first want our community and allies to understand that its scope is currently limited to Braidwood, the Texas employer named in the lawsuit, and its 70 employees. It also undermines the bipartisan plans of the United States government to end HIV by 2030.
"However, there are other potential implications to this ruling, which may set a dangerous precedent for how the government can support the refusal of coverage for health services based on individual religious beliefs. We must remain vigilant of this ruling being used as a precedent to deny individuals access to medications, which includes PrEP but can also be inclusive of contraceptive care. This further underscores how the fights for reproductive justice and LGBTQ+ equality are intrinsically linked."
|
|
|
|
This article shared 1024 times since Thu Sep 8, 2022
|
| ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE |
|---|
| 
|  | WORLD Czech president, ex-athlete's legal dispute, Congo rebels, killing
2023-02-05
Former army chief and high NATO official Petr Pavel won the Czech Republic's presidential election, CNN reported. Pavel, a retired general running for office for the first time, won 58.3% of the vote, defeating controversial billionaire ...
| 
| | WORLD Pope Francis, non-binary minor, athlete dies at 35, Taiwan
2023-01-29
Pope Francis made headlines when he told the Associated Press on Jan. 24 that "being homosexual is not a crime," although he also described being gay as sinful, Gay City News noted. The pontiff called on ...
| 
| | NATIONAL Missing student, Utah bill, Atlanta Pride, crime items, Castro bar
2023-01-29
A New York City law student has been missing for weeks—and his brother said his last known location was The Q, a gay bar in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, NBC News reported. Jordan Taylor, 29, a ...
| 
| | Lesbian named presiding judge of Cook County Circuit Court's Pretrial Division
2023-01-27
--From a press release - CHICAGO (January 27) — The Hon. Mary C. Marubio has been named the acting presiding judge of the Pretrial Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans said. Marubio (who Windy ...
| 
| | FDA to relax rules of blood donations for gay, bisexual men
2023-01-27
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reportedly slated to lift restrictions on blood donations from sexually active gay and bisexual men. However, there's at least one stipulation, The Advocate reported: A gay or bisexual ...
| 
| | Pope says being gay no crime, cites anti-LGBTQ laws in 70 countries. LGBTQ leaders respond
2023-01-25
--From press releases - (January 25, 2023) — Pope Francis called laws that criminalize same-sex relationships "unjust," stating that "being homosexual is not a crime" in an interview with the Associated Press today. The Pope also called for the Roman ...
| 
| | NATIONAL Calif. bills, DeSantis, HIV vaccine, Meta, college items
2023-01-22
Buried within the bills California legislators filed after Gov. Gavin Newsom released his budget proposal for the 2023-2024 fiscal year is a line seeking to retrieve $13 million back from the state's Transgender Wellness and Equity ...
|
| | One in five older LGBT adults experienced poverty during the COVID-19 pandemic
2023-01-19
--From a press release - A new report from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law found that during the COVID-19 pandemic LGBT adults aged 50 and older were more likely to have household incomes below the federal poverty level ...
| 
| | Rogers Park's R Public House's door destroyed by homophobic vandal
2023-01-18
The lesbian-owned restaurant and bar R Public House, 1508 W. Jarvis Ave., was targeted by a hammer-wielding man yelling anti-LGBTQ slurs at about 5:40 p.m. during happy hour on Monday, Jan. 16. Owners (and married couple) ...
| 
| | WORLD Indian marches, delegation in Cuba, anti-LGBTQ+ investigation
2023-01-15
Hundreds of people took part in the first Delhi Queer Pride march in three years as pressure grows for legal recognition of same-sex marriage in India, The Manila Times noted. In March, the South Asian's top ...
| 
| | Pritzker signs bill protecting healthcare providers
2023-01-13
Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill explicitly offering protections to Illinois healthcare providers working on reproductive and/or gender-affirming care issues for their patients on Jan. 13. The bill, HB4664, also protects out-of-state clinicians who come to ...
|
| | Illinois General Assembly passes legislation to protect reproductive and gender-affirming healthcare, leaders respond
2023-01-11
--From a news release - From Equality Illinois Statement from Equality Illinois Deputy Director Mony Ruiz-Velasco on passage by the Illinois General Assembly of essential legislation to protect patients, providers, and families seeking and providing ...
| 
| | NATIONAL Democrats and trans issues, political wins, gay bars, HIV drug
2023-01-08
Republicans and Democrats differ widely in their views on gender identity and transgender issues—but there are notable differences among Democrats, too, especially by race and ethnicity, according to Pew Research. Overall, 60% of U.S. adults say ...
| 
| | NATIONAL Indiana's 'Don't Say Gay,' drag show, Citi, new LGBTQ+ terms
2022-12-31
GOP lawmakers in Indiana have said that a proposal to restrict discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools—modeled after Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill—will be drafted in the new year, according to INTO. The ...
| 
| | 2022: Gains made against a backdrop of attacks
2022-12-27
There was no shortage of dramatic and consequential events to consider as the top stories for the LGBTQ+ community in 2022, and most of those events threaten to spill over into 2023: the Supreme Court's interest ...
| | |
|
|
|
|
