Religiously Affiliated Hospitals & Fed Law (SCOTUS)

[Panich52]

Should Religiously Affiliated Hospitals Be Allowed To Ignore A Federal Law That Protects Employee Pensions?
Mar 27, 2017 by Liz Hayes in Wall of Separation

Today the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a trio of cases that will decide whether religiously affiliated hospital systems must comply with federal pension protections. The large health systems don’t want to; they argue they should get a narrow exemption to the law carved out for houses of worship. But these health systems, with nearly 100,000 employees, are not churches.

If these health systems get to take the religious exemption, their employees’ pensions are at risk. Bottom line: The employees face real harm. And the high court’s decision not only will impact all of these health systems’ employees, but it could ultimately affect hundreds of thousands of employees across the country who work for countless religiously affiliated employers, including other health systems.

Religious freedom does not entitle these health systems to harm their employees, and that’s why Americans United filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Supreme Court.

The cases – Dignity Health v. Starla Rollins, Advocate Health Care Network v. Maria Stapleton and St. Peter’s Healthcare System v. Laurence Kaplan – revolve around a federal law known as the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. ERISA requires most employers that offer pension plans to include measures of security and transparency to safeguard employee pensions.

The law has a narrow exemption from its rules for houses of worship to prevent government intrusion into church finances. But religiously affiliated employers, particularly health systems, have been wrongfully taking the narrow exemption and converting their employee pension plans into “church plans.”

More:

http://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/should-religiously-affiliated-hospitals-be-allowed-to-ignore-a-federal-law

[mopinko]

1. these hospitals are rarely "non-profit"

a couple of the big catholic chains in il have been sued for failing to provide charity care commensurate w the tax advantages afforded them.
and then they diddle the figures, to boot.

[dlk]

2. They're Happy to Take Government Money

Isn't it interesting that these hospitals have no problem helping themselves to taxpayer/government funds but when it comes to following the rules, they balk and file lawsuits, claiming religious privilege? Aren't they actually businesses? Apparently, hypocrisy is a part of their religious teaching.

[BSdetect]

3. All religions are a con. Giving them tax breaks sucks.

It has to stop.

Hope the employees are protected.

The Catholic church alone could probably end world poverty if they sold off their possesions (including the Vatican with its vaults of treasures).