Help Wanted: Denial of same-sex benefits

Even when insurers are subject to state insurance law, they might not provide coverage for same-sex domestic partners, depending on the plan. As for same-sex married couples, state law requires New York insurers to provide coverage for same-sex married couples if they provide coverage for spouses.

But here's one key layer: The length of the notification depends on whether the employee's medical benefits are from a current or former employer, said employment attorney Ellen Storch of Kaufman Dolowich Voluck & Gonzo in Woodbury.

In your case, you're dealing with a current employer. So on to the next layer: How long the notification has to be depends on whether a company is self-insured. That term generally means that companies assume the liabilities for health-insurance claims, as opposed to paying to have them covered by insurance companies, or third parties. This difference is usually imperceptible to employees because self-insured companies often have insurance companies administer their benefits.

Here's the bottom line: A self-insured company must give employees a 60-day notice of a benefits termination.

The nine-day period applies if the company isn't self-insured but instead pays an insurer for employees' benefits.

"Once the provider notifies the employer of the intended termination of benefits, the employer must notify the employee within nine days of the intended date of termination," Storch said.

For more on state insurance laws and same-sex coverage, contact the state Department of Financial Services' consumer hotline at 800-342-3736