TightWind is written by Kyle Baxter. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

The Obama administration will issue new rules requiring hospitals receiving Medicare or Medicaid funds to allow same-sex couples the same visitation rights as family members:

The White House announced the rule changes, which will also make it easier for gay men and lesbians to make medical decisions on behalf of their partners, in a memorandum released Thursday night. In it, the president said the new rules would affect any hospital that participates in Medicare or Medicaid, the government programs to cover the elderly and the poor.

The change doesn’t just pertain to same-sex couples; rather, it allows patients to designate visitors and who can make medical decisions for them if they are incapacitated.

It’s a good change. There’s no reason a partner in a same-sex relationship should be barred from visiting their partner in the hospital merely because the law doesn’t recognize their relationship.

If we are going to have Medicare and Medicaid, this is a perfectly valid and just rule.