The ERISA Industry Committee Releases New DOMA Poll

Poll focuses on changes to domestic partner health coverage

For Immediate Release

Washington, DC – The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) today released a new poll on health benefits offered by their large employer members to domestic partners. The poll is the third and final poll that addresses the evolution of domestic partner benefits over the last three years.

ERIC is the only national trade association advocating exclusively for the employee benefit and compensation interests of the country’s largest employers –companies with 10,000 or more employees. ERIC members employ millions of Americans across all 50 states.

This survey of ERIC members focused on the reaction of large employers to the legalization of same-sex marriage after two important decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court in Windsor and Obergefell. ERIC was specifically interested in learning whether companies plan to continue offering health benefits to same-sex domestic partners now that same-sex marriage is legal in all states.

The poll found that currently large employers overwhelmingly provide domestic partner benefits to same-sex couples (87% of respondents), and 64 percent of respondents offer them to  opposite-sex couples. With marriage now legal for same-sex couples, 40 percent of those companies that participated in the poll are considering ending domestic partner benefits, while an equal number do not plan to end these benefits. Almost 15% of respondents have dropped domestic partner health benefits within the last two years.

“ERIC members have had a strong history of providing health and retirement benefits to same-sex partners long before Obergefell v. Hodges,” said Gretchen Young, Senior Vice President of Health Policy, ERIC. “This new poll shows that despite same-sex marriage being legal, many of ERIC’s members will continue to offer these important benefits.”

You can view the results of the poll here.

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All media inquiries to The ERISA Industry Committee should be directed to media@eric.org.

About The ERISA Industry Committee
ERIC is a national advocacy organization that exclusively represents large employers that provide health, retirement, paid leave, and other benefits to their nationwide workforces. With member companies that are leaders in every sector of the economy, ERIC advocates on the federal, state, and local levels for policies that promote flexibility and uniformity in the administration of their employee benefit plans.