BS
Licensed insurance agent
Cake values integrity and transparency. We follow a strict editorial process to provide you with the best content possible. We also may earn commission from purchases made through affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more in our affiliate disclosure.
According to Pew Research Center data released in October 2021, the percentage of U.S. adults ages 25 to 54 in 2019 who were married was 53%, significantly lower than the 67% of people in that age bracket who were married in 1990.
During that same period, Pew’s research found that the percentage of adults living together without being married more than doubled, jumping from 4% in 1990 to 9% in 2019.
As the percentage of couples who decide to marry continues to decline, more unmarried partners are asking if they can be on the same health insurance plan, especially if one partner doesn’t have health insurance coverage available where they work.
In this article, we’ll look at the availability of health insurance for unmarried couples and domestic partners, how to add your unmarried or domestic partner to your health insurance plan, alternatives to using the same plan, and more.
Whether or not you can add your unmarried partner to your private health insurance plan depends on two factors: the health insurance company you have coverage with and your employer.
No federal law mandates that health insurance companies and employers allow unmarried couples to be on the same health insurance plan. However, health insurance companies can choose whether or not to let unmarried couples be on the same health plan.
The same thing also holds for employers who offer group health insurance as an employee benefit. Just like they can decide how long an employee must work for the company before they’re eligible to participate in the group health plan, an employer can also choose if they’ll allow unmarried partners to be eligible for coverage.
There is no hard and fast rule why some companies allow unmarried partners to be eligible for coverage and others don’t.
Similar to the Internal Revenue Service, Medicare and Medicaid don’t recognize unmarried couples as spouses, which prevents couples from being on the same health insurance plan. Marketplace coverage for unmarried couples who are not domestic partners is also unavailable.
It should be noted that states, health insurance companies, and employers differentiate between an unmarried partner and a domestic partner.
An unmarried partner is a person you have a committed relationship with but who doesn’t live with you. A domestic partner is also someone you are in a committed relationship with who does live with you.
While few states, insurance companies, and employers offer private health insurance coverage for unmarried couples on the same health plan, most approve of domestic partners being on the same.
Each state handles the issue of adding domestic partners to private health insurance plans differently. For example, California mandates that health insurance companies and employers doing business in California offer coverage for domestic partners. At the same time, the state of Texas leaves that decision up to insurers and employers.
To help you add a domestic partner to your private health insurance plan, let’s answer a few questions clarifying what a domestic partnership is and who qualifies for domestic partner health insurance.
A domestic partnership, as defined by the United States Office of Personnel Management, is a committed relationship between two unmarried partners of the same sex or opposite sex who:
Some health insurance carriers will ask you to provide proof that you and your domestic partner qualify for coverage. This often involves showing them that you occupy the same residence, have joint bank accounts, or share living expenses.
Depending on the insurance company, they may ask to see:
Domestic partners cannot be added to your Medicare or Medicaid plan. However, depending on your state, you may be able to be together on the same marketplace health insurance coverage.
Following these two simple steps will make adding your unmarried or domestic partner to your private health insurance plan go smoothly.
In addition to the documentation listed above that insurers may ask for, some health insurance companies will require you to sign an affidavit confirming the relationship.
Suppose your state of residence allows domestic partners to be on the same health insurance marketplace plan. In that case, you can add your domestic partner by contacting your insurer and requesting the necessary paperwork.
Although they may be required to allow you to add a domestic partner, the marketplace insurer has the right to ask for the same proof of domestic partnership as they do for a private health insurance plan.
Since so few health insurance companies allow unmarried couples to use the same health plan, let’s look at several alternatives.
First, you can look into buying individual health insurance for each partner. Often, it’s less expensive for each of you to have your own policy instead of being on the same plan.
Second, if one partner’s insurer or employer doesn’t allow unmarried couples to be on the same plan, try the other partner’s group health insurance provider and employer (if applicable).
We’ve highlighted the basics of adding an unmarried or domestic partner to your health plan, but here are some additional questions that are frequently asked.
Whenever you buy life insurance or health insurance , you never know if the plan will meet your needs until you do your research. Factors you should consider before you select a health insurance plan include:
If your health insurance company agrees to cover your domestic partner on your policy, you will likely be able to add your children to the plan. This includes your biological children, stepchildren, and any legally adopted children.
The benefits and coverage for those children will depend on the health insurance plan. If you’re getting coverage through your employer, your plan administrator or benefits coordinator can explain what the policy does and doesn’t cover.
Some employers are concerned about offering health insurance plans that cover unmarried and domestic partner benefits because they believe it will cost them more.
This belief has not been proven to be accurate. Studies have shown that the monthly premiums for unmarried and domestic partner benefits are the same as benefits for married spouses. Whether or not an employer contributes towards the cost of those premiums is totally at their discretion.
You can ask your employer to add unmarried and domestic partner benefits to your company’s health plan. They may be willing to add this coverage if you can show them that doing this isn’t going to cost them any more than it does to have coverage available for married spouses.
In addition to the District of Columbia, these states recognize domestic partnerships:
Five states also recognize civil unions: Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Vermont, and New Jersey.
If you live in one of these states, check with your employer to see how these laws affect your group health insurance benefits.
Even though you might be engaged to be married, if you and your fiancé aren't living together, you won't be eligible for domestic partner benefits. However, if you lived together and established your domestic partnership before you became engaged, your fiancé should be eligible, depending on the insurer's and employer's rules.
The IRS sets clear boundaries between health insurance for married couples versus domestic partners.
Federal tax laws dictate that health insurance premiums for spouses and dependents can’t be taxed. However, because the federal government doesn’t recognize domestic partnerships, premiums paid for a partner and dependents are considered taxable income.
Because the federal government doesn’t recognize domestic partnerships as a legal union of two parties, each state determines the health care rights of domestic partners living in that state.
For example, domestic partners are given hospital visitation rights in some states and can make medical decisions for their partners. In addition, if their partner is ill, they can take paid medical leave to provide care, and they can also take bereavement leave if they need to take time off from work to plan a funeral or burial.
The ACA provides unmarried partners looking for health insurance with various options.
If both partners need coverage, subsidies are available through the marketplace. When completing an application for coverage on the healthcare.gov website, you’ll be asked if you’re also applying for coverage for your unmarried partner.
The ACA benefits same-sex partners the same as heterosexual partners, although some insurers won’t issue coverage to same-sex partners. When you’re shopping for coverage on the website, there is a filter available that will eliminate companies that don’t offer same-sex coverage.
Although the federal government doesn’t yet recognize these relationships where taxes and insurance benefits are involved, the increased number of health insurance companies and states that do is a sign that people are changing how they think about households, families, and relationships.
Telling your elected officials how you feel can make a difference in future federal and state regulations concerning health insurance benefits for unmarried couples and domestic partners.
