Missouri senators have passed legislation specifically allowing employers to refuse, on religious ground, to provide health insurance that covers contraception, sterilization or abortion.
The Senate's 28-6 vote Friday moved the bill to the Missouri House, where it was passed during mid-afternoon.
The legislation is a response to a policy announced earlier this year by President Barack Obama's administration. That policy requires insurers to cover birth control at no additional cost to women working at religious institutions such as hospitals and colleges that don't pay for contraption in their health care plans.
