The final rules issued on June 28 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services implementing its mandate that employers provide coverage of contraceptives “will require more careful analysis,” New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan said in a statement. The H.H.S. final ruling updates proposed rules the department had issued in February and left open for comment through April. The bishops say the H.H.S. mandate, part of the Affordable Care Act, will require most employers, including religious employers, to provide coverage of contraceptives, sterilization and some abortion-inducing drugs free of charge, even if the employer is morally opposed to such services. It includes an exemption for some religious employers that fit its criteria. Cardinal Dolan said that he appreciated the “five-month extension on implementing the complex proposal,” meaning the government extended its “safe harbor” period to Jan. 1, 2014, protecting employers from immediate government action against them if they fail to comply with the mandate. Before the final rules were released, that period was to end on Aug. 1 of this year. -- July 1, 2013
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America’s editors on the ground in Rome discuss the latest conclave news and the work that remain for whoever is elected as Pope Francis’ successor.
Much of what you hear about who the next pope will be, spoken with enormous confidence by people in the know, is often completely contradictory.
Cardinals Rosa and Sako said they expect the conclave to be brief and last two to three days. While not revealing a name, Cardinal Sako said he already had a “very clear” idea of who he intended to vote for.
All 135 cardinals who are under the age of 80 and have not renounced the right to enter the conclave will have full voting rights.