The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) is taking action to protect healthcare providers, health, insurers, employer, and other health plans and their sponsors and others from being penalized for refusing to cover or pay for abortion by states or other entities covered by the rights of conscience rules of the Weldon Amendment.

On March 19, 2026, OCR announced its investigation of 13 states for allegedly violating the Weldon Amendment federal health care conscience law by coercing health care entities, health insurers, and employers and their health plans to provide coverage of, or pay for, abortion contrary to conscience.

The Weldon Amendment, among other things, prohibits federal, state, or local government discrimination against health care entities that choose not to pay for, or provide coverage of, abortion. 

After it repudiated a 2021 Biden Administration era letter that excluded employers and plan sponsors from the scope of health care entities protected by the Weldon Amendment, OCR notified states and other regulated entities no longer rely on the now-repudiated legal position.

OCR Director Paula M. Stannard says, “Under the Weldon Amendment, health care entities, such as health insurance issuers and health plans, are protected from state discrimination for not paying for, or providing coverage of, abortion contrary to conscience. Period.”

OCR’s announcement builds upon the Trump Administration policy and HHS’ resulting recent efforts to enforce federally protected right of conscience protections and protect human life. 

Over the past year, OCR initiated a host of policy revisions and investigations in furtherance of President Trump’s priorities of protecting rights of conscience and human life. See  Fact Sheet: HHS Takes Comprehensive Action to Enforce Conscience Rights and Protect Human Life, and OCR’s conscience and religious freedom webpage.

Among other things, OCR has taken action to protect health care workers, support whistleblowers, and reinforce adherence to religious and conscience exemptions in the Vaccines for Children Program as part of these policies.

Earlier this year, OCR also issued a Notice of Violation that found an Illinois state law violated the Weldon and the Coats-Snowe Amendments, which are part of the two dozen federal health care conscience protection statutes that HHS enforces. The Illinois Notice of Violation charged the Illinois law unlawfully ties health care provider conscience protections to referral requirements in the case of abortion.

Along with the charges against Illinois, OCR also:

• Issued three public notices describing OCR deregulatory actions to align with President Trump’s E.O. 14182, Enforcing the Hyde Amendment; and
• Issued nationwide Dear Colleague Letter explaining OCR’s right of conscious policy under the Trump Administration.

That guidance rescinded and repudiated certain Biden Administration era policies that the Trump Administration viewed outdated or inconsistent with the law as construed and enforced by the Trump Administration.

To educate the public, OCR also released a nationwide Dear Colleague Letter summarizing federal health care conscience protection statutes, including those laws specific to abortion, sterilization, and assisted suicide.

In light of the new OCR emphasis on protecting rights of conscience against governmental, encroachment, as well actions of private healthcare or other organizations regulated or funded by OCR, as well as healthcare providers, health plans and insurers, their employer or other sponsors, and fiduciaries should evaluate their policies and practices. 

Health plans, their employer and other sponsors, fiduciaries, and administrators that felt compelled to offer abortion or other reproductive services, Taylor vaccine policies, or engage in other conduct and violation of their rights of conscious should consult experienced legal counsel about the protections potentially available under the new policies of the Trump Administration and the required or recommended steps to take to revise their plans to defensively exercises rights.

Meanwhile, states, local governments, government contractors, and healthcare and other organization, subject to HHS write a conscious rules should reevaluate their policies regarding abortion, vaccination, and other reproductive rights in light of the new guidance to avoid violating the adjusted policies.

If you have questions about this or other health care concerns, contact the author. 

For More Information

We hope this update is helpful. For more information about the  or other health or other employee benefits, human resources, or health care developments, please contact the author Cynthia Marcotte Stamer via e-mail or via telephone at (214) 452 -8297.

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