Obama vs. Church: Playing safe on birth control

WASHINGTON, Feb 11 (AFP) - President Barack Obama announced a compromise to defuse a row over access to birth control which has outraged Catholic leaders and sparked claims he has infringed religious freedom.

A senior Obama aide said that the president would no longer require religious organization to offer free contraception on employee health plans, but will put the onus on insurance firms to offer the services to all women.

"These institutions that have a religious objection do not have to offer this to their employees and they do not have to pay for it," said the official on condition of anonymity.

But the officials, keen to avoid angering the important election demographic of women voters, said that Obama had not compromised on the core issue in the dispute — providing contracep- tive care to all women free of charge.

The fight erupted when the administration decided not to exempt religious employers from a requirement under its health reform law that work-based insurance plans offer women coverage for contraception. Officials argued that women who worked, for example as a nurse at a Catholic hospital, may not share their employers religious opposition to contraception and should have the same rights as women workers elsewhere. Catholic leaders were outraged — though houses of worship were exempt — and Republicans used the row to whip up a social issues storm, firing up their conservative political base in election year. Officials said the administration would now require health insurance firms to offer health care plans not including contraception to religious organizations.