NASHVILLE (AP) - A federal appeals court has reaffirmed its prior judgment that the contraceptive mandate of the Affordable Care Act does not violate the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

The Friday opinion of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals primarily concerns six Catholic groups in Tennessee and Michigan that claim the mandate violates their religious beliefs.

As religiously affiliated nonprofits, they don't have to pay directly for their workers' birth control. Instead, their insurance providers are required to pay for it. But the groups still say the scheme makes them complicit in the provision of contraception.

They asked the courts to temporarily exempt them from the requirement while their case makes its way through the courts.

On Friday, a three-judge panel of the 6th Circuit denied the request, reaffirming an earlier ruling.