They May Lose Their Hearts, But Not Their Wallets: ERISA Rules, They Say.
There are 2,500 restaurants open for business in San Francisco. After reportedly negotiating with the Government of the City of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Restaurant Association ("GGRA") has sued the City in Federal Court. The group claims to represent San Francisco restaurants and their interests. It seems that the City passed a Health Care Program contained in a "Health Care Security Ordinance" in July, 2006 which is set to take effect in July, 2007.
The restaurant association says that it is in favor of health. However, part of the City's Program mandates Employers to pay money to support the provision of health services to otherwise uninsured people in San Francisco. The GGRA alleges in its Federal Case that this provision of the San Francisco city ordinance violates the exclusive domain of a Federal Statute, the Federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA").
Under the ordinance, the city does not offer Health Insurance as such. Instead, the ordinance is directed at paying doctors and hospitals who will provide health care to some 82,000 presently uninsured people in San Francisco. To accomplish this end, the ordinance requires payments into the Program from various sources including from businesses with 20 or more employees.
The GGRA's Federal Court Complaint apparently contains the restaurant association's position that the rest of the San Francisco ordinance should remain intact even if the employer payment mandate is struck down. An electronic search of the Federal Court for a copy of the Complaint has not yielded a copy to date. However, the Case Number in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California is 3:06-cv-06997-JSW. Perhaps an enterprising reader will send us a copy of the Complaint and I will be glad to then post it here. In the meantime, see the news report of this new Federal Case invoking ERISA and Health Insurance in Carolyn Marshall, "Restaurant Group Sues Over Health Plan" (New York Times, Nat'l ed., Tuesday, November 14, 2006, page A14, col. 3) or in this article posted online: Restaurant News Resource (11.08.2006).
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ALWAYS CONSULT THE CASES AND LAWS OF EACH PARTICULAR JURISDICTION AND
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LEGAL QUESTION.
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