(Bloomberg) — The Senate turned back a Democratic proposal requiring for-profit companies to provide workers with insurance coverage for birth control even if the employer has religious objections.

Senators voted 56-43, with 60 required, not to advance the measure, which seeks to reverse the U.S. Supreme Court ruling involving the craft-store chain Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. Democrats say the court's decision grants some employers unfair say over women's health care.

"Women should call the shots when it comes to their health-care decisions: Not their boss, not the government, not anyone else — period," Senator Patty Murray of Washington said yesterday in a floor speech. She drafted the measure with fellow Democratic Senator Mark Udall of Colorado.

In the June 30 Supreme Court decision, the justices ruled 5-4 that closely held companies can refuse on religious grounds to provide employees with contraceptive coverage.

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