Rights for Gay Workers Expanded
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From the Left
Office of Personnel Management: Benefits now available to same-sex spouses
The same-sex spouses of federal employees can begin applying for benefits including health insurance and retirement accounts immediately, the Obama administration said Friday, two days after the Supreme Court overturned a key provision of the Defense of Marriage Act.
The Office of Personnel Management offered the guidance in a letter to the heads of executive departments and agencies, detailing access to many of the benefits to which legally married same-sex spouses will now have the same access heterosexual married couples do, including health, life, dental, vision and long-term care...
From the Right
Government announces benefits for gay federal workers after court ruling
A wide range of federal benefits, from health insurance to flexible spending accounts, are now available to married gay and lesbian federal employees and their families following the Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage.
"These initial changes in federal benefits will make a meaningful, positive difference in the lives of many. But this is only the beginning," Attorney General Eric Holder said after the Office of Personnel Management issued guidance to federal agencies on Friday. Some of the benefit changes outlined in the guidance include:
From the Center
In a Twist, Children Help Propel Gay-Marriage Ruling
In striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act this past week, the Supreme Court not only rejected a longstanding rationale for laws disfavoring gays and lesbians—the welfare of children. The court turned it on its head.
Backers had justified the 1996 federal law as a way to ensure children didn't grow up thinking that gay relationships were equal to those of heterosexuals. The same was true for Proposition 8, the 2008 California initiative ending same-sex marriage that also fell with the Wednesday ruling by the high court.
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