About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

13 Yale J. on Reg. 255 (1996)
Travelers Insurance: New Support for the Argument to Restrain ERISA Pre-Emption

handle is hein.journals/yjor13 and id is 261 raw text is: Travelers Insurance: New Support for the Argument to Restrain ERISA Pre-emption Karen A. Jordant In recent years, courts have applied the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA ) to pre-empt an increasingly wide scope of state laws, with the effect of limiting remedies of plan participants and beneficiaries and frustrating state health care reform efforts. Professor Jordan argues that the recent Supreme Court decision in New York State Conference of Blue Cross & Blue Shield v. Travelers Insurance Co. is a signal from the Court that ERISA pre-emption should be applied more narrowly. She first analyzes the Court's prior pre-emption decisions and identifies delimiting language unheeded by lower courts. She then explores the impact of Travelers on ERISA pre- emption analysis, finding the decision renews emphasis on the historical presumption against pre-empting laws within state police power and takes a more pragmatic approach to discerning congressional intent regarding ERISA pre-emption. Finally, by examining certain emerging pre-emption issues, namely those involving provider taxes and contract and tort claims she assesses the effectiveness of the analytical framework derived from Travelers and prior Supreme Court cases in restraining the scope of ERISA pre-emption. Professor Jordan concludes that the framework can effectively restrain findings of pre- emption and should lead to more rational pre-emption decisions. Introduction .................................... 256 I. ERISA Pre-emption: The Scope of the Phrase Relate To before Travelers ................................... 261 A. Supreme Court Pronouncements ................. 262 1. Laws Found to Relate To ERISA Plans ........ 263 2. Limitations on the Scope of the Phrase Relate To . . 268 B. Inconsistencies in Applying Supreme Court Precedent .... 271 1. The Hospital Rate-Setting Legislation at Issue ..... 273 2. The Split in the Circuits .................... 280 II. The Supreme Court Decision in Travelers .............. 282 A. An Indirect Economic Impact Is Not a Regulation of an ERISA Plan .............................. 282 B. Analysis: A Signal for a More Restrained Application of tAssistant Professor, University of Louisville School of Law. J.D., summa cum laude, Indiana University School of Law. Previously, Assistant Director, the Center for Law and Health, Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis. Copyright © 1996 by the Yale Journal on Regulation

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most