The following comes in a July 24 story in the Sacramento Bee.
In response to last month’s historic gay-marriage rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court, CalPERS’ health plan is holding a special open-enrollment period for same-sex couples who were previously married.
The enrollment period, which began this week, is for gay couples who had gotten married before the court decisions but shied away from the CalPERS coverage because of provisions in DOMA, the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
Because of DOMA, gay employees on CalPERS’ health plan were allowed to enroll their spouses but had to pay federal taxes on their partners’ benefits.
The Supreme Court declared part of DOMA unconstitutional June 26, the same day it advanced legal gay marriage in California by refusing to rule on Proposition 8.
With DOMA gone, CalPERS members no longer have to worry about the tax consequences if they enroll their spouses in the health plan.
But there was a hang-up. Gay employees who had already wed – including those who got married in 2008, the brief window when same-sex marriage was first legal in California – couldn’t enroll their spouses. That’s because newlyweds normally have just 60 days to enroll their spouses in CalPERS’ health plan.
Now the California Public Employees’ Retirement System has addressed that issue. Effective immediately, those employees can enroll their spouses through a “one-time exception” announced by CalPERS.
“Now that DOMA has been struck down, we’re going to offer this opportunity,” said CalPERS spokeswoman Amy Norris. The enrollment window ends Dec. 31.
Separately, DOMA also prevented gay employees from enrolling their spouses at all in CalPERS’ long-term care insurance program. A group of couples sued CalPERS over that ban, and the case was making its way through the courts when the Supreme Court ruled on DOMA.
The long-term care program is now open to gay spouses, although they’ll have to wait a while to buy in. The long-term care problem has been closed off to new enrollees for five years because of financial problems. But it has raised premiums substantially and will start taking on new customers in December.
To read original story, click here.
This should not be a surprise to anyone. CA voters have consistently elected immoral politicians, who appoint immoral judges and immoral employees.
How is the State going to pay for all these high powered benefits? Is Detroit coming to CA?
The ‘California Debt Clock’ shows a debt of approx. $389 BILLION.
How do these people feel about OBAMACARE ?
Well, Sally, if the big employers of the state don’t enroll same sex spouses, they will lose sorely needed talent to other states who will. Highly talented individuals have a choice where to go. And if a company is willing to give you as much money to work in Kentucky as they do in Los Angeles, but the company in Kentucky gives you better benefits AND it’s cheaper to work there, many people would move to Kentucky. And take their spouse along with their talent, their salary, and their tax base with them.
There are no same-sex spouses; it’s a legal fiction.
I will grant you Sawyer that it is a legal construction. I’m not sure what you mean by a legal fiction. It is legal, it is true, and it is legally true.
YFC,
They are not their spouses, they are their sexual hookup partners, and every time they do so, they are digging their hole in Hell deeper, that includes you!
May God have mercy on your poor soul,
Kenneth M. Fisher
Poor poor Mister FIsher:
The US Supreme Court and its subsidiary courts beg to differ with your first phrase. I suppose any married couple could be called “sexual hookup partners”, so I’ll give you that one. As to digging deep holes in Hell, keep at it if you desire. You seem to be doing a pretty good job, so I too wish God will have mercy on your poor soul.
And besides….this is about health care and taking care of each other in old age. It’s not even about sex, though I know you are obsessed with gay sex. Maybe you should spend more time in prayer and perfecting your own marriage, and less time worrying about the couple down the road.
Unless rearing children, or anable to work due to health or age, all Americans should work and get their own benefits.
The government should not give benefits to anyone except the employee and those who fit in my above sentence.
Jesus saves!
Well, Mr. Fisher, who are you to judge? I remember when I was in my early 20’s I picked up a hitchhiker and took him to the college. I dropped him off and told him to have a nice day. He smirked at me, imitated my voice and said, “You have a nice day too, fella.” My thought, “Who are you to judge me?” Skai is right, some people don’t like nice.