Under the new rule, hospitals must allow lesbian and gay persons to have visitation rights. This is the kind of rule change that everyone thought Obama would implement in the first days of his term instead of only months before an election which some fear will be a Democratic bloodbath. Better late than never. The new LGBT family-friendly policy was inspired by the total creeps at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida. The hospital refused to let a woman (who had power of attorney documents) visit her dying partner of 17 years. The couple's (Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond) 4 children were also barred. Their mother died alone. I think I'd rather die on the sidewalk than in such a cruel and soulless hospital. Obama called the surviving partner to tell her he was inspired by her sad story to issue the memorandum. There are a lot of questions about the actual enforcement of this directive when up against the kind of monsters found at Jackson Memorial in Miami. See:
Pam Spaulding: Breaking: Presidential memo boosts hospital rights of LGBT partners and their families
Update: Jackson Memorial Inhumane Hospital, in Miami Florida, has apparently changed its cruel policy:
Politics LGBT News Gay
