Lawsuit Says Walmart Discriminates: No Health Insurance for Same Sex Spouses

Wal-Mart’s policy to deny health insurance to the spouses of gay and lesbian workers is being challenged in a lawsuit on grounds that it is discriminatory under ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1970). A Reuters report with an ERISA expert says the lawsuit is unlikely to succeed— and ProfLERoy agrees. This is because Walmart is self-insured—and therefore, it falls out of ERISA’s regulatory framework which includes, in part, a prohibition against discrimination. Employers have long used self-insurance as a refuge for tailoring benefits to fit their values and preferences. The fix? Probably needs legislation…. But some employers will likely argue that they have a religious right under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act not to be “substantially burdened” [using operative term from RFRA statute] by such a law. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/20/qa-walmart-idUSL1N1000DU20150720