Under the current laws, most same sex couples do not have the right to COBRA insurance unless the state in which they live allows them to be married in a same sex civil union. Therefore only states that recognize same sex marriage/civil unions would cover the same sex partner under the federal COBRA law which requires that the qualifying dependent is a spouse.   Some states that currently allow same sex couples to continue health insurance under COBRA insurance laws for the former employee and the spouse are Massachusetts, Iowa, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, and the District of Columbia.

Since the COBRA insurance law requires that the qualifying beneficiary actually be a spouse, this means in many cases that a domestic partner will not be allowed to continue to receive COBRA insurance under the current law.  This applies to same sex domestic partners and heterosexual domestic partners.  With that said, some more progressive states offer state run COBRA insurance plans to same sex partners who are domestic partners, as do some companies.  It is important if you are losing or quitting your job and part of a same sex partnership that you inquire about your right to maintain health insurance benefits under the COBRA law with the federal or state government, or similar run company program.