Rights of Domestic
Partners Upheld As Miami-Dade County Commission Passes “The Domestic Partners
and Family Health Coverage Ordinance”
By an 8 to 4 vote,
the Miami-Dade County Commission approved an ordinance that will ensure health
insurance and civil rights for all Miami-Dade employees’ domestic
partners.
Those Commissioners
voting against the ordinance were: Dorrin D.Rolle, Natacha Seijas., Joe A. Martinez, and Jose “Pepe” Diaz.
The benefits of this
ordinance are enormous for the community:
* County employees would have the ability
to provide health insurance for their domestic partner and their dependents.
* Provides employees with domestic partners
medical, sick leave and family leave that apply to employees with spouses.
* Creates a domestic partner registry that
employees of the county, residents, and visitors can use to officially register
their domestic partnership.
* The registry provides for hospital
visitation rights at all hospitals in Miami-Dade County.
* Simply put, the ordinance increases
access to healthcare for ALL Miami-Dade County families.
* Benefits for domestic partners, gay or
straight, is good for county employees.
* Miami-Dade County will finally join
neighboring counties that offer domestic partner benefits making it competitive
in recruiting and retaining quality employees.
* These benefits are negligible in cost as
attested to by the county's internal auditors.
* The number of uninsured treated by
Jackson Memorial at taxpayer expense will decrease.
* Provides peace of mind for those
employees whose loved ones are not insured.
* The ordinance would address current
workplace equality by providing benefits to all couples, married on unmarried,
gay or straight.