Domestic Partner Health Insurance
When it comes to domestic partner health insurance, most observers agree the insurance industry has kept up with the times. As notions of traditional and common-law marriage, as well as same-sex civil unions, have been changing, so has family health insurance. To provide a historical perspective, over the past 27 years, many major corporations decided to cover same-sex partners under their spousal and family health insurance policies.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) began lobbying the insurance industry on behalf of gay, lesbian and transgender couples in the 1980s. According to the HRC, most employers require that a same-sex couple or domestic partnership be defined something like the following: "They are emotionally and financially interdependent, do not have a different domestic partner or spouse, have reached the age of consent, and are not related."
San Francisco was considering legislation to give benefits and protections to unmarried adults living together in committed relationships (both same-sex and opposite-sex) in 1981. The Village Voice, a free weekly newspaper in New York City, was the first private employer to extend benefits to domestic partners in 1982. More than 20 American employers were offering "spousal equivalent" benefits to their employees' same-sex partners by 1990. Levi Strauss & Co. was the first Fortune 500 Company to offer health benefits to unmarried couples in 1992. As of 2006, most of the Fortune 500 Companies were offering the same health benefits to employees who lived with domestic partners that they did to married employees. The Washington State legislature approved domestic partnerships in 2007. In May 2008, the Washington, D.C. City Council approved new provisions to its domestic partners law, bringing the law to a point where same-sex couples who register as domestic partners will receive most of the rights and benef its of marriage under District law.
Federal Government Considering Changes Too
It appears that the Federal government is not ready to follow the lead of progressive private companies and city and state governments. The deputy director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management told a Senate hearing in September 2008 that his agency opposes legislation that would provide domestic partners of gay federal employees the same benefits available to spouses of straight employees. This could change with the new administration in 2009 and the possibility of health care reform legislation.
Domestic Partner Health Insurance - Know Your Rights!
Some domestic partners (gay or straight) may not realize that they now have many of the same rights and benefits as traditional couples. The main question is what type of insurance coverage will meet their needs and how much insurance they are able to afford. No question, the entire industry has changed dramatically. In summary, today same-sex couples should feel free to ask for information about domestic partner health insurance. Chances are, it is your right to have the insurance that meets your needs whether you are a gay or straight couple.
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