You + Me = Benefits Baby 💕
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In honor of the upcoming holiday, we thought it was only fitting to touch on the sexiest of all subjects: health insurance. If you’re like us, two unmarried women in a relationship hustling to give the best life possible to our two tiny chihuahuas — maybe you’ve contemplated how nice it would be able to share health benefits (and a gynecologist!) Turns out, you can, if your carrier provides domestic partner benefits!
What is a Domestic Partnership?
Domestic partnership refers to two individuals, same sex or opposite sex, who are not legally married but are in a committed relationship. We’ll explore some sample documentation below to show the level of “commitment” insurance agencies are looking for when determining partner benefits.
Although not federally recognized, some states and localities have created provisions to extend benefits, including health insurance, normally only given to married couples.
In Most Cases, It’s Completely Up to the Employer
Since there’s no blanket mandate to provide health insurance to domestic partners nationwide, the decision is ultimately up to your company. Some states and municipalities, such as New Jersey and California, have state mandated insurance laws with specific provisions for domestic partners.
New Jersey
Health insurance carriers are required to give companies the option to offer health insurance benefits to domestic partners.
California
As usual, California is the most progressive on this issue. State law requires that any group policy that covers spouses must extend eligibility to “registered domestic partners (RDPs).” To qualify as an RDP, you must meet all the requirements below and register with the Secretary of State.
- Both persons share a common residence.
- Neither person is married to someone else or is a member of another domestic partnership with someone else that has not been terminated, dissolved, or adjudged a nullity.
- The two persons are not related by blood in a way that would prevent them from being married to each other in this State.
- Both persons are at least 18 years of age.
- Either of the following:
- Both persons are members of the same sex.
- One or both of the persons is/are over the age of 62 and meet the eligibility criteria under Title II of the Social Security Act as defined in 42 U.S.C. Section 402(a) for old-age insurance benefits or Title XVI of the Social Security Act as defined in 42 U.S.C. Section 1381 for aged individuals.
- Both persons are capable of consenting to the domestic partnership.
Bottom Line
Since most of the time it’s completely up to your employer, the best thing is usually to speak with your HR rep at the company or directly to the insurance carrier.
For example, one of us works at a startup and asked our operations person if we had domestic partner benefits. Since it’s a small company where people wear many hats, they weren’t 100% sure. But, after speaking with the insurance carrier, we found out that the plan did provide domestic partner benefits!
Our plan asked us to provide the following documentation:
Any three (3) of the following documents + a signed affidavit:
- Common ownership of real property (joint deed or mortgage agreement) or a common leasehold interest in property
- Common ownership of a motor vehicle
- Driver’s license listing a common address
- Proof of joint bank accounts or credit accounts
- Proof of designation as the primary beneficiary for life insurance or retirement benefits, or primary beneficiary designation under a partner’s will
- Assignment of a durable property power of attorney or health care power of attorney
It was a bit of a headache, but figuring out our specific benefits situation allowed us to have choices. My partner chose to work as a freelancer without company-provided insurance benefits, which is something we’ll explore in another article. Going through this process forced us to learn more about health insurance and how to research and advocate for ourselves — increasing our overall financial literacy. Also, after six years, it’s nice to know that we can reach a new level of adorably boring, domestic bliss.
Some other helpful links:
Domestic Partner Health Coverage
6 Misconceptions in Companies that Offer Domestic Partner Benefits
