Since the 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which brought marriage equality nationwide by ruling that marriage is a fundamental right to which same-sex couples should have the same access as opposite-sex couples, employers have sought to do the right thing in the name of equality and provide spousal benefits to both same- and different-sex married couples. Many employers assumed that the marriage ruling obviated the need for partner benefits; however, this is not true. While marriage equality is undoubtedly a monumental step toward full equality, LGBTQ+ individuals remain at risk for discrimination in many other aspects of daily life and these vulnerabilities continue to create barriers for many LGBTQ+ Americans to exercise their legal right to marry.
In the absence of sexual orientation and gender identity protections through federal and consistent state law, LGBTQ+ individuals remain vulnerable to discrimination in housing, access to public places, federal funding, credit, education, jury service, and, in some cases, employment (for employees not covered under Title VII). While LGBTQ+ Americans can get legally married, this lack of guaranteed protection in other domains means a newly married LGBTQ+ couple are at risk for eviction from their home by a discriminatory landlord that sees their wedding photos on social media. Until LGBTQ+ Americans have full equality through the federal Equality Act, domestic partner benefits will remain an essential CEI standard that helps to fill the void left by federal and state law and ensure LGBTQ+ workers and their families receive equitable benefits whether married or partnered.
Domestic partner benefits do not only serve same-sex couples. In fact, over the last decade most businesses that have offered same-sex partner benefits also extended these to partners. In other words, businesses have increasingly recognized the value of decoupling benefits from the legal definition of marriage to meet the needs of their diverse workforces.
Competitive employer-provided benefits’ packages are critical to attracting and retaining talent. From healthcare coverage to retirement investments and more, ensuring LGBTQ+ inclusive benefits to employees and their families is an overall low-cost, high-return proposition for businesses. In addition, equitable benefits structures align with the principle of equal compensation for equal work. Apart from actual wages paid, benefits account, on average, for approximately 30 percent of employees’ overall compensation. Therefore, employers should ensure that this valuable bundle of benefits is equitably extended to their workforce, irrespective of sexual orientation and gender identity. When denied equal benefits coverage, the cost to LGBTQ+ workers and their families is profound.
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To receive credit in the CEI, a company must:
More information:
Note: You will upload one document for spousal and domestic partner eligibility.
To receive credit in the CEI, a company must:
Upload summary plan documentation of health insurance covered with eligibility that clearly indicates unmarried domestic partners are eligible for healthcare benefits.
More information:
Learn more about why HRC strongly recommends continued provision of domestic partner benefits. See our white paper on this topic for more information.
Unmarried partners of employees are sometimes eligible for coverage under "Plus-One" (also "Other Qualified Adult," or "Legally Domiciled Adult") status. In these cases, employers have made benefits available to an adult living with the employee, regardless of marital status or gender, although other limitations may exist depending on the employer. If this is something your company has done, you can indicate this in the survey.
Examples:
Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast's employee benefits guide states the benefits may be extended to domestic partners of employees.
Oregon Health & Science University allows employees to cover domestic partners as eligible dependents for benefits.
Benefits Eligibility: Other Qualified Adults, Univ. of Michigan
Coverage for Legally Domiciled Adults, Georgetown
Note: You will upload one document for spousal and domestic partner eligibility.
To receive credit in the CEI, a company must:
Answer “yes” or “no” to this question.
If you answer “yes,” indicate which documents are required for same and different-sex spouses as well as same and different-sex domestic partners
If applicable, upload a copy of your company’s domestic partner affidavit
More information
If an employer requires proof of eligibility of family members, and would also require proof of eligibility of same-sex partners, the employer should allow any of the following:
Partnership affidavit (as defined by the employer/insurer)
Municipal domestic partnership registration
State domestic partnership registration
State civil union license
State marriage license
Marriage licenses issued in other countries
Examples:
BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois Affidavit of Domestic Partnership
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Affidavit of Domestic Partnership
Note: HRCF cannot accept plans that require state registration for proof of domestic partnership. Given affidavits provide a clear process for couples to attest to their relationship status, requiring state registered partnerships is unnecessary. You insurer likely has a standard affidavit that can be used.
To receive credit for spousal and domestic partner benefits in the CEI, a company must:
Offer the following standard health benefits:
Note: A company cannot earn any credit for domestic partner benefits if the benefits listed above are not covered as they represent minimum standard medical coverage.
To receive credit for spousal and domestic partner benefits in the CEI, a company must:
Offer soft benefits equally to spouses and domestic partners regardless of sex.
Upload a copy of the applicable policy or benefit.
If a benefit is simply not offered, a company can select “Benefit not offered” without consequence. Partial benefits (i.e. those offered to spouses and not partners) will result in partial credit (5 points).
Soft benefits include:
FMLA/"FMLA-like" equivalent benefit
Policy allows employees to take unpaid, job-protected family and medical leave to care for domestic partners as well as the children of a domestic partner.
Visit our page on Family and Medical Leave Act: FMLA-Equivalent Benefit for Domestic Partners to learn more about making an inclusive family and medical leave policy equivalent.
Bereavement leave benefit
Includes the event of the death of a domestic partner or the partner’s immediate family. Examples of these policies include:
Arkansas Children's Hospital's bereavement policy names domestic partners as immediate family members of employees for them to take bereavement leave.
Emma Pendleton Bradley Hospital includes domestic partners as family members that employees may take bereavement leave for.
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute provides bereavement leave for employees in the event of a the death of their domestic partner.
Employer-offered supplemental life insurance
Relocation/travel assistance
Employee discounts
Employee assistance program
To receive credit for spousal and domestic partner benefits in the CEI, a company must:
Offer survivor benefits equally to spouses and domestic partners regardless of sex. If a benefit is simply not offered, a company can select “Benefit not offered” without consequence. Partial benefits (i.e. those offered to spouses and not partners) will result in partial credit (5 points). Survivor benefits include:
QJSA/QJSA-equivalent
QPSA/QPSA-equivalent
Cash-balance plans
More information:
Visit our page on Domestic Partner Benefits: Pension Survivor Annuities to learn more about making these benefits available to domestic partners of eligible employees.
Note: For retirement and survivor benefits, please only answer based upon those benefits that are currently available options to all new hires (i.e. not based upon closed, cancelled, or "grandfathered" plans). (Hint: Most pension plans are no longer open.)
To receive credit for spousal and domestic partner benefits in the CEI, a company must:
Offer retirement benefit options equally to spouses and domestic partners regardless of sex. If a benefit is simply not offered, a company can select “Benefit not offered” without consequence. Partial benefits (i.e. those offered to spouses and not partners) will result in partial credit (5 points). Retirement benefit options include:
Hardship distribution
Rollover distribution
More information:
Visit our page on Domestic Partner Benefits: Hardship Withdrawal Option for Retirement to learn more about making these benefits available to domestic partners of eligible employees.
Visit our page on Domestic Partner Benefits: Nonspouse Rollover Provision for Retirement Plans to learn more.
Note: For retirement and survivor benefits, please only answer based upon those benefits that are currently available options to all new hires (i.e. not based upon closed, cancelled, or "grandfathered" plans).
To receive credit for spousal and domestic partner benefits in the CEI, a company must:
Offer family formation benefits equally to spouses and domestic partners regardless of sex. If a certain family formation benefit is simply not offered, a company can select “Benefit not offered” without consequence. Partial benefits (ex. those offered to spouses and not partners) will result in partial credit (5 points).
More information:
The CEI will evaluate the following family formation benefits:
Adoption assistance
Cryopreservation
Infertility treatment coverage (non-in-vitro)
Foster care assistance
In-vitro fertilization
Surrogacy benefits
Paid family leave (not FMLA)
Due to differences in laws and regulations from state to state, providing family formation benefits is crucial for access to these services for LGBTQ+ people. It is also important to remove barriers that limit LGBTQ+ people from accessing these benefits. For example, health plans often require a diagnosis of infertility for family formation benefits and have a definition for infertility that excludes many LGBTQ+ couples and hopeful single parents.
RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association provides a variety of resources and information about insurance coverage for employers which includes an evidence-based guide on providing employee fertility benefits and a model policy.
Examples:
Some companies utilize concierge services that specialize in family formation navigation. These "add-on" services can be helpful in incorporating family formation benefits into an existing health plan and are often LGBTQ+ inclusive. For example, Moffit Cancer Center and NYU Langone Health utilize Progyny which has excellent LGBTQ+ examples and inclusion in their member guide.
Download Resolve’s Coverage at Work Employer Toolkit which includes a model benefit for Infertility Diagnosis and Treatment and Fertility Preservation Services.