Should Christian corporations be exempt from Obamacare?
Bill Keller's column in the NYTimes today explores the question of: "Can a corporation have a conscience?" It's his way of asking whether corporations, meaning any business with 50 or more employees, will win their suit to opt out. Can a corporation choose what parts of government programs to accept and enforce? Can a corporation deny certain birth control options if the owner is driven by religious opinions?
Of course, it's a rhetorical question meant to provoke discussion rather than get an answer. But it does speak to the heart of a lot of political conversations and makes us all wonder whether the argument, according to lawyer Kyle Duncan, is that "For owners who have woven religious practice into their operations…'an exercise of religion in the context of a business' is still an exercise of religion, and thus constitutionally protected."
In my personal opinion, the idea of providing preventative and emergency birth control to anyone and everyone who wants it is ethically compelling and a responsible way for a nation to treat its citizens.
But, from what I understand about legal issues, corporations are legally treated as people now, so they essentially can argue that they get the same First Amendment protections as a human. If a corporation wants to deny employees religiously prohibited health care based on arguing freedom of religion, it seems like it will be possible to make a great argument for that, legally speaking.
But then, of course, if you zoom out another level, the question becomes: If a corporation can choose not to fund something based on disagreement, what else could a corporation decide not to fund? What if an environmental company decides it won't fund maternity leave because it feels like it is encouraging overpopulation? What if a restaurant won't pay all of a person's salary because that person is an heavy drinker or an unhealthy eater and they don't want to fund the development of a disease? Where would the choices of what to fund end?
Thoughts? I'd love to hear any other opinions in the comments.
Image courtesy of Herr P. via flickr