  ©A.M. Stan     As I have outlined before, the argument by
Hobby Lobby and the other employers in the cases, Burwell v.
Hobby Lobby Stores and Conestoga Wood Specialties v. Burwell is
that the contraceptive "mandate" imposed by the Department of
Health and Human Services as part of the Affordable Care Act
violates their rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration
Act of 1993. Under the RFRA, federal regulations and future
statutes  (unless specifically exempted) are not permitted to
"substantially burden" a "person's" religious beliefs unless the
the government does not have a less restrictive means of
achieving a compelling interest. The majority holds that the
contraceptive mandate—which requires health plans administered
by employers to include coverage, without copayment, for a range
of prescription birth control methods—cannot be applied to Hobby
Lobby based on these standards. Its arguments, however, fail at
every step. Let us review:  Secular, for-profit corporations
cannot exercise religion. The m