Hi guys. I already posted this in /r/legaladvice but didn't get as many helpful responses as I was hoping for. Wondering if anyone in here has another idea...

I work for one of the large health care systems here in Minnesota. We have multiple hospitals and clinics all over the area. The department I work in happens to be grouped in with the main hospital (even though, as a side note, I don't actually work at the hospital).

And that hospital, specifically, happens to be affiliated with the Catholic Church...even though the rest of the company's clinics, offices, and smaller hospitals are not.

I recently inquired about getting a vascectomy, but found out that my health care plan doesn't cover that procedure. After doing a little digging, I learned that because my department is grouped in with the Catholic-affiliated hospital, I have different insurance coverage than every other employee that works for my company. So, basically, I can't get my vascectomy covered because the church has a moral opposition to it. But someone else who works for the same company, does the same job, and is signed up for the same insurance plan can as long as they work in a different department.

I just learned about this recently, and so I'm in the very early stages of figuring out how to appeal this. But I'm just looking for some information about whether this is even allowed. I know that churches and private companies that have religious ties are allowed to not cover birth control, sterilization procedures, and abortions. But this situation seems unfair to give me different benefits than fellow employees.

Thoughts? Are they really allowed to do that? Any ideas on an organization that might be able to help me fight this or the type of lawyer I could contact to find out if there's a way to appeal it?