Catholics for Choice

Press release

President Obama Finally Does the Right Thing for Women

20 January - President Obama listened to all of the women and men who called, e-mailed and wrote to the White House to express their support for family planning decisions staying in the hands of women. In so doing, he remained true to the original vision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and refused to bend the knee to intense lobbying from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Catholic healthcare industry and other special interests who wanted him to expand a refusal clause that would have denied millions of women access to affordable family planning. Read more.

Conscience

Thinking Republican

Republicans running for any elected office are expected to bend over backwards to affirm their antichoice credentials. But we know that, just as Catholics are ill-served by their leadership, so too are Republicans ill-served by theirs. This issue of Conscience features members of the GOP who believe that their party's platform of limited government includes protecting women's bodily autonomy. It is available online in an easy-to-browse version or as a PDF.

Defending Conscience

Catholics Support Access to Contraception under Affordable Care Act

19 December 2011- Katha Pollitt in The Nation writes, "Who matters more to President Obama, 271 Catholic bishops or millions upon millions of sexually active Catholic women who have used (or—gasp!—are using right this minute) birth control methods those bishops disapprove of? Who does Obama think the church is—the people in the pews or the men with the money and power? We’re about to find out." Read more.

Action Alert - Call the White House: Tell the Obama Administration to Stand Strong With Women

28 November 2011- In an open letter to President Obama published on today’s New York Times op-ed page, Catholics for Choice called on President Obama to stand up for what women and men want and ensure that family planning is included on the list of essential preventive services under the Affordable Care Act. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has been lobbying hard, calling for the president to include an expansive refusal clause that will ensure that millions of women and men are denied no-cost family planning coverage. Read more.

23 November 2011 - The following is a joint message from Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, and Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America.
The overwhelming majority, 98 percent, of sexually active Catholic women use a form of modern contraception. Read more.

19 November 2011 - Catholics for Choice president Jon O’Brien was interviewed this week about conscience rights and the attempts by the US bishops to impose their views on all Americans by Time magazine and Voice of America.

"The idea that bishops are going to dictate what is happening in American hospitals and in health care systems is a cause of great concern." Watch the video.
Voice of America: Catholic Bishops: Religious Liberty Under Attack in US

“I think we can say that Catholics are indeed practicing religious liberty — just not the kind the bishops want us to.”
Time: Why Radical Pro-Lifers Are Wasting Their Time

Mr. O’Brien was also invited to testify before the US House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health on the topic: “Do New Health Law Mandates Threaten Conscience Rights and Access to Care?” Read more.

His testimony was cited in a November 6 editorial in the New York Times: "A New Battle over Contraception."