According to a news report from nrn.com, “A federal appeals court has given San Francisco the go-ahead on at least a temporary basis to implement its controversial employer-funded plan for extending health insurance to all workers in the city. Under the program, restaurants and other businesses that employ at least 20 people are required either to provide health insurance to every staffer or pay a fee, computed by the media at $1.17 to $1.76 per hour for each worker.”

“The funding mechanism was scheduled to go into effect Jan. 2. But U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White ruled the week beforehand that the employer mandate conflicted with national legislation that designates the federal government as the lone body that can regulate employee benefits,” said the story. “Ruling on a legal action brought by a group that included the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, White blocked enactment of the provision. Observers noted at the time that the ruling could affect a number of so-called play-or-pay health-care funding proposals that were pending in other cities, counties and states. Fourteen states are currently considering that mechanism for extending health insurance coverage, according to the National Restaurant Association.”

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