More and More Health Insurance Plans are recognizing Domestic Partnerships

Traditionally if an insurance policy issued by an employer extends coverage to a spouse, there is no law that states that the policy must also extend that coverage to other domestic partners. The question of medical insurance coverage for domestic partners is not only one that is part of the debate over same sex marriages "traditionally health insurance benefits also did not extend to any other domestic arrangements other then marriage, regardless of the sexes of the couples involved. This includes opposite sex couples living together as "co-habitants", common law marriages, or under civil unions.

But this is changing. While there is no requirement under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to do so, more and more insurance companies are recognizing such arrangements and are currently offering health benefits to unmarried domestic partners. Industry experts believe this is a trend whose time has come and they expect to see it continue to grow as small to midsize companies follow the lead taken by larger companies and offer health insurance and other medical benefits across the board to all manner of unmarried couples.

Several States have passed legislation supporting the rights of those in domestic partnerships or civil unions. Among them, California and Seattle both of which have municipalities that require all businesses with municipal contracts to offer the same benefits to same-sex couples as they do for married couples. Vermont recently enacted the country's first "civil union" law, which grants same-sex couples almost all of the benefits to that married couples are entitled in that State.

Every State and indeed even every insurance company can vary in what they consider a domestic partnership and what health insurance benefits they will provide. Some companies will define domestic partners only as same-sex couples because they feel that opposite sex couples living together without the benefit of marriage, can choose to get married; whereas same-sex couples do not have that options. Other States and other companies so as not to make this a "gay rights" issue merely regard any unmarried couple living together the same way regardless of sex.

While the definitions vary, making it difficult to know if a given company will provide medical coverage for a domestic partner, when they do extend health insurance benefits to domestic partners it is almost always the same as the benefit level for spouses, including hospitalization, dental and vision care.