News Article

Consumer Voice Supports Equal Rights for Same Sex Spouses of Nursing Home Residents

February 10, 2015

Consumer Voice has submitted comments of support for proposed federal regulations that would guarantee equal rights forsame sex couples in Medicare and Medicaid participating facilities - such as nursing homes, hospitals, and hospices. These rules from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) would require nursing homes and other health care facilities in all states to provide equal rights to the same sex spouses of residents and patients whose marriages have been legally recognized in any state. 

Currently, federal regulations do not give same sex spouses of individuals in Medicare and/or Medicaid certified facilities the same rights other spouses possess. These proposed rules would update the current federal regulations for Medicare and/or Medicaid certified facilities to reflect the United States v. Windsor Supreme Court decision, which ruled that a U.S. federal  interpretation of "marriage" or "spouse" applying only to heterosexual unions is unconstitutional. Residents in nursing homes and their same sex spouses deserve to have equal rights and protections under federal law, which is why these regulations are so critically important.