Satanic Temple Says Its Followers Can Claim Exemption From Informed Consent Abortion Laws Under Hobby Lobby Principles

The Satanic Temple announced yesterday that it was launching a campaign against "informed consent" laws that require abortion providers to furnish women certain informational material when they seek an abortion.  Citing the Supreme Court's recent Hobby Lobby decision, the group argues that women can claim an religiously-based exemption from the informational requirements. It makes available through its website a letter that women may download and present to their physician asking for an exemption. The Temple says that it believes the body is subject to one's will alone, and that the informational statutes require biased and false information to be presented to discourage abortions. It explains:

the Supreme Court has decided that religious beliefs are so sacrosanct that they can even trump scientific fact. This was made clear when they allowed Hobby Lobby to claim certain contraceptives were abortifacients, when in fact they are not. Because of the respect the Court has given to religious beliefs, and the fact that our our beliefs are based on best available knowledge, we expect that our belief in the illegitimacy of state ­mandated ‘informational’ material is enough to exempt us, and those who hold our beliefs, from having to receive them.

Huffington Post has more details.