by George Ray

This post was originally published on July 1, 2013 at 4:29 pm at federalbenefitsadvocates.com

Acting Director Elaine Kaplan of the government's Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a Memorandum on June 28 titled "Guidance on the Extension of Benefits to Married, Gay and Lesbian Federal employees, Annuitants, and Their Families". The complete memo can be found at the Chief Human Capital Officer's Council web site.

On June 26th, the Supreme Court ruled Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as unconstitutional. As a result, employee benefits for Federal employees and retirees can now be extended to those who have legally married a spouse of the same sex. Additional information will be issued to answer the numerous questions for Federal employees who may be affected by the decision.

The memo discusses the ruling's effect on the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program, Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI), Federal Employees Dental and Vision InsurancePlan (FEDVIP), Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP), and retiree's ability to provide survivor annuities for same-sex partners.

In the case of the employee benefits programs mentioned above, Federal employees are being provided the ability to make changes to their present benefits for the next 60 days (up until August 26, 2013). The exception is for retirement survivor benefits which will allow changes for up to 2 years (i.e., June 26, 2015) from the date of the Court's decision.