Massachusetts sues Trump over contraception rules rollback

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey sued the Trump administration Friday for allowing more employers to opt out of providing birth control coverage by claiming religious or moral objections. The Democrat called the actions ‘‘a direct attack on women’s health and the right to access affordable and reliable contraception.’’ Under new rules issued by Trump on Friday, employers with religious or moral qualms also will be able to cover some birth control methods, but not others. Healey said Trump’s action is unconstitutional because it allows employers to impose their religious beliefs on their workers. She said it also violates equal protection guarantees by targeting the ability of women to access contraception. ADVERTISEMENT ‘‘It is a woman who should decide, not her employer, whether she uses birth control,’’ Healey said. ‘‘What President Trump and his administration has done is unprecedented.’’ ‘‘It is a terrible, terrible rule,’’ she added. Healey, a fierce critic of the Republican president, said the change could be felt by as many as 1.4 million women in Massachusetts and 55 million nationwide — and could cost women as much as $25 million annually to cover the costs out of pocket. She said the rule also violated normal processes because there was no public period before it was imposed. Healey’s office filed the lawsuit Friday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts. The suit seeks to immediately block the change and have it ruled un