Judge throws out Massachusetts lawsuit over Trump birth control rules

The Trump administration issued a ruling that expands the entities which can exempt themselves from the contraception mandate in the Affordable Care Act. A federal judge in Boston Monday threw out a lawsuit by Massachusetts' attorney general that attempted to block the Trump administration's rules expanding exemptions from ObamaCare's birth control mandate. U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton said Massachusetts lacked standing to sue and noted that "the record is uniquely obscure" regarding whether employers in the state would take advantage of the exemptions. In a statement, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said that she was disappointed in the decision but remained committed to ensuring "affordable and reliable reproductive health care for women." ObamaCare originally required most companies to cover birth control at no additional cost, though it included exemptions for religious organizations.