James Esseks,
Co-Director,
老澳门开奖结果 LGBTQ & HIV Rights Project
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January 5, 2012

Sometimes people do something that鈥檚 so mean-spirited that it brings you up short. That was my reaction when I first heard that Michigan legislators were considering a law that would bar cities and counties from providing health care insurance to the domestic partners of their employees. But despite the 老澳门开奖结果's best efforts, the state legislature passed that measure and the governor signed it during the Christmas holidays. So today, we sued 鈥榚尘.

The new law is called the Public Employee Domestic Partner Benefit Restriction Act, and it does just what its title suggests 鈥 it bars gay employees鈥 partners from health care coverage. And here鈥檚 the kicker 鈥 the law allows city and county employers to provide health care coverage to just about all other family members 鈥 uncles, nieces, even cousins. Ours are the only family members that are excluded.

Fifteen or twenty years ago, a law like this might have been unremarkable. But today, against a backdrop of national polls showing close to 80 percent support for LGBT-related workplace fairness laws and over 50 percent support for marriage for same-sex couples, Michigan鈥檚 spanking new Domestic Partner Benefit Restriction Act stands out as out-of-step and just plain mean.

How mean? Consider this: plaintiffs JoLinda Jach and Barbara Ramber (pictured above) have been together 17 years. JoLinda works for the City of Kalamazoo, MI, and has provided Barbara health care through the city鈥檚 insurance plan. Last year, Barbara was hit in her left eye by a baseball, which has permanently damaged her eyesight and resulted in glaucoma. She now needs to take medications daily to prevent going blind, medications that Michigan鈥檚 new law says she can鈥檛 get through JoLinda鈥檚 city job. With her eye problems, getting private insurance would be prohibitively expensive, to the extent it鈥檚 even available.

With this lawsuit, we鈥檒l keep working to save Barbara鈥檚 eyesight and for fairer workplace laws in Michigan.

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