Courts Overturns Key Part of San Fransisco’s Universal Coverage

Judge White ruled that the employer assessment violates the federal ERISA law (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) which, among other things, prohibits state and local governments from mandating that employers must provide health insurance to their workers. ERISA was the federal law cited by Maryland and New York federal courts in overturning so-called Wal-Mart laws passed last year to require very large employers to cover their workers or pay a tax.