AP Source: Obama To Change Birth Control Rule

WASHINGTON (AP) — A person familiar with the decision says President Barack Obama will announce a plan to accommodate religious employers outraged by a rule that would require them to cover birth control for women free of charge.

Obama is expected to make the announcement at the White House on Friday.

The administration announced in January that religious-affiliated employers had to cover birth control as preventative care for women. Churches and houses of worship were exempt, but all other affiliated organizations were ordered to comply by Aug. 2013.

Opponents of the measure, including Catholic cardinals and bishops and Republican leaders, responded with intense anger.

The person with knowledge of Obama’s decision requested anonymity in order to speak in advance of the official announcement.