Depending on how the Supreme Court rules later this week on the constitutionality of the individual mandate, nearly a million jobs at the nation's Catholic hospitals could be affected.

CNSNews.com is reporting that 765,894 jobs at the nation's Catholic hospitals is hanging in the balance pending the Court's ruling which is expected to be handed down on Thursday.

"The 629 Catholic hospitals account for 12.6% of the nation’s total and provide 765,894 jobs (530,673 full-time and 235,221 part-time - the equivalent of 640,894 full-time jobs)," writes Craig Bannister for CNS.

The societal cost of losing these hospitals goes far beyond the jobs lost, however. The country would also lose 120,311 hospital beds. And, Catholic hospitals now treat one out of six (16.6%) Medicare and one of seven (13.6%) Medicaid patients."

But, as Cardinal Francis George warned earlier this year, all of these hospitals – along with their jobs - could be gone "two Lents from now" unless the mandate that all health insurers offer abortifacient drugs and sterilization is declared unconstitutional.

The HHS mandate is set to go into effect for most health-care plans on August 1 - unless the Supreme Court strikes it down.

The stakes could not be higher!

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