De Buono v. NYSA-ILA Medical & Clinical Services Fund Ex Rel. Bowers

This is another Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) pre-emption case.1 Broadly stated, the *809question presented is whether hospitals operated by ERISA plans are subject to the same laws as other hospitals. More precisely, the question is whether the opaque language in ERISA’s § 514(a)2 precludes New York from imposing a gross receipts tax on the income of medical centers operated by ERISA funds. We hold that New York may collect its tax.

I

In 1990, faced with the choice of either curtailing its Medicaid program or generating additional revenue to reduce the program deficit,…