Domestic Partner Health Insurance Coverage Requirements
The Human Rights Campaign reports that in 2008 approximately 57 percent of Fortune 500 companies offered health insurance policies to same-sex partners of their employees. Domestic-partner health insurance allows lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals to include their partners on their policies. Heterosexual unmarried individuals may also benefit from domestic partnership insurance policies; however, there are certain requirements that must be met in order to qualify for the program.
Eligibility Requirements
To be considered eligible for domestic-partner health insurance benefits both partners must be older than 18 and have resided in the same home for a minimum of six months. Affidavits must be completed that swear that both partners have the intent of living with each other indefinitely. Both partners must not be married to anyone else and are not to be related by blood.
Domestic Partner Relationships
Insurance companies require domestic partners to be exclusive with each other and to share a close and personal relationship with the intent of being responsible for each other's welfare. If at any time a partnership ends, the insurance policy will be void.
Monetary Requirements
Domestic partners seeking a health insurance policy are required to demonstrate that they are jointly responsible for basic living expenses within their home. Basic living expenses are defined as the cost of food, shelter and other expenses that occur because of the joint partnership.
Mental Competency
Both partners are required to be mentally competent at the time of signing up for a joint health insurance policy. This means that they both understand the definition of domestic partnership and the requirements needed to qualify and sustain an insurance policy.
Waiting Periods
Some employers require that domestic partners wait for a period of six months to a year before being granted a joint insurance policy. Checking with your insurance company or employer's human resource department can determine the exact wait time.
Taxation of Domestic Partnership Insurance
Domestic partner's insurance policies are taxed differently than same-sex married insurance policies. The Human Rights Campaign reports that domestic partners pay, on average, around $1,069 a year more in taxes on their insurance policy. Collectively, employers who offer domestic partnership insurance policies pay around $57 million a year in additional payroll taxes. The increase of taxes within a domestic partnership insurance policy occurs because the federal and state governments are unable to report unmarried or same-sex relationships on the employee's taxable wages earned.
Tags: insurance policy, insurance policies, domestic partnership, health insurance, domestic partners
