Recently uncovered emails discovered by Alliance Defending Freedom lawyers between Planned Parenthood and the California Health and Human Services agency (CHHS) reveal the abortion industry giant pressured the state to force religious groups and churches to cover abortion on demand.

In the emails, Planned Parenthood lobbyists warned the California Department of Managed Health Care and CHHS that if the state didn’t “fix” the health plans of religious organizations by including coverage for abortion, Planned Parenthood would promote its own legislative “solution.”

In one email to state officials, Planned Parenthood pressed: “Simply saying that [employer] healthcare plans only need to cover ‘medically necessary’ abortions has been the source of the issue and [this] does not solve the problem.”

Subsequently, in August 2014, the managed care division declared that under Obamacare, abortion was now “basic health care.” Thus, all insurance plans in the state—even those of churches and other religious organizations—were now required to provide coverage for elective abortions.

Three churches—Foothill Church in Glendora, Calvary Chapel Chino Hills in Chino and The Shepherd of the Hills Church in Porter Ranch—filed a notice of appeal last Thursday against the measure.

“The government shouldn’t be forcing churches to pay for abortion,” said Jeremiah Galus, legal counsel for ADF, which represents the churches. “It is shameful and inappropriate that the government did so in this case at the bidding of Planned Parenthood.”

Eric Stanley, ADF senior counsel and director of the ADF Center of Christian Ministries, adds: “The state has no business implementing Planned Parenthood’s scheme to force religious groups to act contrary to their own pro-life beliefs under the threat of massive penalties if they don’t comply.”