SSM Health Settles Church Plan Case on Appeal to 8th Cir.

SSM Health and its workers settled claims that the Catholic hospital allegedly misused a religious exemption in federal benefits law to under fund its pension plans by more than $700 million.

The parties reached the settlement, which was announced Oct. 29, while the the workers sought to revive their claims in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. They have until Nov. 19 to provide more settlement details, including amount, and seek court approval.

Earlier this year, a federal judge in Missouri dismissed the workers’ claims because they couldn’t allege that the underfunded status of the plans caused ...