Tenth Circuit Answers Questions Left Open Following Supreme Court’s Advocate Health Network v. Stapleton Decision, Significantly Diminishing Plaintiffs’ Ability to Challenge a Church-Affiliated Healthcare Organization’s Retirement Plan’s Church Plan Status Under ERISA

Seyfarth Synopsis: In Medina v. Catholic Health Initiatives, — F.3d —, 2017 WL 6459961 (10th Cir. Dec. 19, 2017), the Tenth Circuit held that a retirement plan sponsored by Catholic Health Initiatives (“CHI”), a church-affiliated healthcare organization, is a “church plan” under ERISA. This decision strengthens the litigation positions of religiously-affiliated healthcare systems who are facing similar lawsuits across the country and gives other courts a solid framework to analyze the relevant statutory provisions.

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