President Obama’s HHS Mandate In August, 2011 President Obama announced that a Health and Human Service Mandate will go into effect August 1, 2012, forcing religious organizations to cover abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization, and more through their insurance companies, which they cannot comply with. The Mandate Violates Freedom of Religion President Obama’s HHS Mandate violates freedom of conscience, a right that is guaranteed by the First Amendment and even several federal laws. The right to practice one’s religious beliefs is protected by The Bill of Rights. The Obama administration’s attempt to force all Americans to buy coverage for sterilization and contraceptives, including drugs that induce abortion, is a radical incursion into freedom of conscience. Never before in U.S. history has the federal government forced citizens to directly purchase a product that violates their moral and religious beliefs.