Last week I discussed some of the issues facing same-sex couples with respect to estate planning. Planning is especially important for same-sex couples because they are not provided the same benefits that heterosexual married couples are through the marital deduction or state intestacy statutes.
One thing I specifically mentioned was how necessary powers of attorney are to ensure that a life partner is named as the person to make important decisions because without such designations they would not even be able to visit with their loved one in a hospital. While this still rings true with respect to decision making, news out of the white house yesterday may help same-sex couples to visit with their loved ones while receiving hospital care.
President Obama requested that the Department of Health and Human Services put together a new rule that would permit same-sex couples to visit their partners in the hospital. While nothing is official yet, Obama specifically asked that the regulations allow patients to decide who can visit them and eliminate discriminatory practices. Hospitals and medical centers that wish to continue to receive federal funding through Medicare and Medicaid would be required to meet these standards under the new rule.
While Obama’s newly requested regulations specifically help same-sex couples they will also greatly benefit people without children or immediate family members living nearby, both of which also suffer under the current policy.
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