Posted on 07/31/2013 1:50:05 PM PDT by rhema
ROCHESTER, Minn. -- The Mayo Clinic says its Minnesota employees who are in same-sex domestic partnerships will have to get married if they want their partners to remain eligible for health insurance -- now that the state has legalized same-sex marriage.
Mayo Clinic spokesman Bryan Anderson told the Rochester Post-Bulletin that the clinic hasn't yet determined the deadline for same-sex couples to get married. Same-sex marriages will be legal in Minnesota as of Thursday.
"Mayo has long had a policy providing same-sex domestic partner benefits because those affected were not allowed to be married. That policy notes that marriage would be required if same-sex marriage became legal in the state where the couple lives," Anderson said in a statement.
The Mayo Clinic has offered benefits to same-sex domestic partners since 2000. The Mayo Clinic does not provide benefits for opposite-sex couples in domestic partnerships. In June, the Mayo Clinic sent out an email to employees in domestic partnerships to notify them of the change.
Mayo's policy would be a first among large companies, said Paul Guequierre, a spokesman for Human Rights Watch, a national gay-rights group.
"We have heard companies consider doing this. We have not heard of any companies that have actually done this and from our perspective it is a bad idea to require them to marry," he said.
Guequierre said a key concern is that couples who are forced to marry in Minnesota to get health benefits might move to state where their marriage is not recognized.
"I don't think (Mayo Clinic's) intentions are bad. We would certainly understand why a company would think would be an appropriate route, but I think when you put a little thought into it, it's not necessarily the best for the employee," he said.
Austin-based Hormel Foods is going a different route. The company hasn't offered same-sex domestic partner benefits before, but will begin to do so starting Jan. 1 -- whether a couple is married or not.
That means an employee who marries a same-sex partner before Jan. 1 might have to wait for the new year before benefits become available. Hormel Foods said it is looking for guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Internal Revenue Service and will make adjustments if necessary.
well, those that don’t change partners just have several at the same time!
I worked at Mayo in Arizona when they decided to offer benefits to DPs and some of us were a little upset by the decision, especially since it discriminated against non-homosexual couples. However, we had learned over the years that change occurred very slowly there, so complaining wouldn’t do any good.
Next up- A state by state abolition of “domestic partner” special benefits for homosexuals.
Urgh, that picture.
I remember one time from my graduate days; I was on my way from the library at my university back to my student office in the Natural Sciences & Mathematics complex. I had to use the restroom, and quick; so I ducked into one of the bathrooms of the Humanities building (which is practically an old stone fortress, looks very dirty compared to the other buildings on campus) and went for the can.
You can imagine my reaction when I saw a hole so very much like that one, with handwritten instructions on the wall as to what time you should be in the stall for ‘service’.
I went to a different bathroom. Still gives me the heaves at how blatant it was.
So for 13 years the Mayo Clinic provided benefits to gay or lesbian cohabitating couples but not to unmarried heterosexual cohabitating couples? Talk about discrimination!
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The Mayo Clinic is one of the major achievements of mankind. I’m not sure it can survivor DemocratCare.
Mayo Clinic Blasts House Democratic Health Care Bill
http://spectator.org/blog/2009/07/20/mayo-clinic-blasts-house-democ
I guess they got their minds right now.
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I pinged out an article not too long ago revealing that the numbers of mentally ill sex perverts who actually take advantage of their legal "right" to marry is very small. Very few - a tiny percentage - actually want marriage in any sense of the word. This proves what I've said all along - they only want "marriage" in order to destroy religion, freedom of speech and religion, and create a free for all sexual revolution in society and destroy the natural family. Oh, and access to children. I think that's it.
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It is.
You and I know that, but obvious stuff like that tends to escape liberals.
Now, while I don't agree with gay marriage and anyone offering benefits to same sex couples, good for them for putting some limits on it.
I can’t imagine why any guy would take that kind of chance not knowing what could be on the other side of the wall and just what might happen to his, er..... parts....
Austin-based Hormel Foods is going a different route. The company hasn’t offered same-sex domestic partner benefits before, but will begin to do so starting Jan. 1 — whether a couple is married or not.
Isn’t this discrimination against opposite-sex domestic partners who are not married?
Yes, but that is ok in their book.
I believe that in their guidelines it states because a gay couple could not marry the would get domestic partner benefits, BUT it also evidently states that if gay marriage becomes law in any state they operate in gay domestic praters in that state must marry to continue benefits. But because a man and woman can marry they cannot receive benefits as domestic partners.
It has evidently been worded in a way that they have not had to provide domestic partner benefits for all couples, the wording is also specific enough to now stop gay domestic partner benefits in the state of MN, as they are no longer prohibited from marrying. I believe gay domestic benefits will continue to be available in FL and AZ since those states do not recognize gay marriage.
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