Hobby Lobby wins ruling in Supreme Court

New York -- Retail chain Hobby Lobby was triumphant In a 5-4 ruling by the Supreme Court on Monday in which the court ruled that the federal government cannot force privately held corporations to provide forms of contraceptive coverage that violate the religious beliefs of their owners. The ruling means that private companies can opt out of the Affordable Health Care Act’s contraception coverage mandate.



The family-owned Hobby Lobby, based in Oklahoma City, operates approximately 600 stores nationwide. (Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp., East Earl, Pennsylvania, manufacturers cabinets.) It is owned by the religiously conservative Green family, who challenged the contraception coverage mandate saying it forced them to either violate their faith or pay ruinous fines.



The court's decision applies only to the contraceptive coverage mandated by the new law.