Judge blocks Trump birth control coverage rules in 13 states

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Trump administration rules that allow more employers to opt out of providing women with no-cost birth control pose "potentially dire" financial and public health consequences for 13 states and Washington, D.C., a U.S. judge said in a decision blocking the rules from taking effect in those jurisdictions.

Judge Haywood Gilliam on Sunday granted a request for a preliminary injunction, but limited his order to California, New York and the other plaintiffs before him. They sought to prevent the rules from taking effect Monday while a lawsuit against them moved forward.

The states had shown that the rules would result in the loss of employer-covered birth control coverage for thousands of women, forcing them to turn for contraceptives to state-funded programs or bear the costs themselves, Gilliam said.

The rules were also likely to increase the rate of unintended pregnancies, creating additional costs for the states, the judge said.

The changes would allow more employers, including publicly traded companies, to opt out of providing no-cost contraceptive coverage to women by claiming religious objections. Some private employers could also object on moral grounds.

An email to the Justice Department today was not immediately returned. The department said the government shutdown may affect its response.

"The law couldn't be more clear – employers have no business interfering in women's health care decisions," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement Sunday. "Today's court ruling stops another attempt by the Trump Administration to trample on women's access to basic reproductive care."

The DOJ said in court documents the rules "protect a narrow class of sincere religious and moral objectors from being forced to facilitate practices that conflict with their beliefs."