On June 19th, a federal judge ruled that the Maryland Fair Health Care Fund Act is preempted by ERISA (the Employee Retirement Income Security Act). Maryland's law requires a large employer such as Wal-Mart to either pay a percentage of its payroll for employees' health care or pay an equivalent amount to the state. While the judge's decision is disappointing news for health care advocates, the ruling will likely be appealed. And, the ruling has a limited impact on initiatives in many other states - there are many ways that states can still expand employer-based coverage.

Please join us for a Health Action call on Thursday, July 27 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time to talk with some experts about the decision and what it does and does not mean for other states.