Following Supreme Court Ruling Shaheen Calls for VA to Immediately Extend Benefits to All Same-Sex Veterans

Press Release

Following the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges affirming the right of same-sex couples to marry across the country, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) is calling on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to immediately extend all VA benefits to same-sex veterans. The VA has previously been unable to grant comprehensive benefits to same-sex couples in states that do not recognize such legal marriages.

"Today's decision by the Supreme Court affirmed what many of us have long argued: the Constitution guarantees a right to marry to all couples regardless of their sexual orientation or state of residence," Shaheen wrote to VA Secretary Robert McDonald. "That is why I am urging the VA to act as quickly as possible to implement the spirit of the Court's decision, and ensure that all veterans' benefits are awarded to eligible same-sex families. We have an opportunity to finally honor the service of so many men and woman who have fought to protect the very same freedoms they are now denied as civilians, including my friend Charlie Morgan."

Senator Shaheen has been a strong advocate for the rights of LGBT families and LGBT veterans. Earlier this year, Senator Shaheen introduced The Charlie Morgan Act -- legislation to address the lingering inequality by altering the definition of marriage in Title 38 of the Service Members Civil Relief Act to ensure that all veterans receive the federal benefits they've earned, regardless of their state of residency. The legislation is named after the late New Hampshire National Guard Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan who passed away in 2013 after a battle with breast cancer. After her passing, Morgan's wife and daughter were initially ineligible to receive certain survivor benefits until the Supreme Court ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional.

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