A federal judge on Friday approved a south Mississippi hospital's plan to settle a lawsuit over its financially troubled pension system, although opponents question whether the plan will work, the Associated Press reported. U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola Jr. on Friday ruled in favor of the plan for Singing River Health System to pay more than $156 million to its pension fund over 35 years.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit had ordered Guirola to re-examine the issue after opponents of the settlement had appealed. The legal battle has pitted retirees against Singing River, with retirees trying to hold onto their full benefit, or at least capture as much money as possible. Singing River, which operates hospitals in Pascagoula and Ocean Springs, stopped paying into the system from 2009 to 2014 without telling employees and retirees. That decision was part of a financial crisis at the county-owned hospital system. The pension plan is paying 725 retirees now, and covers 3,200 people, including employees who have yet to retire, as well as former workers who have left. Pension plan manager Traci Christian has reported that the $123 million now in the bank won't last past 2025 without the settlement.
