The Illinois health insurance
marketplace has released a commercial featuring a gay couple.
In the 30-second ad from Get Covered
Illinois, real-life couple Jake and Allen recount the many stages of
their relationship.
“We leveled up,” Allen says as the
pair sit on a living room couch. “Stranger to boyfriend to civil
union to a marriage.”
“In Illinois we can enroll in
affordable care together. The sign-up process took minutes, and
after being uninsured for years, I had appendicitis.”
“Having affordable care was sincerely
a life-saving moment,” Allen adds. (The video is embedded on this
page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
According to The
Washington Post, the commercial, which first aired Friday in
Chicago, is part of a broader “National LGBT Outreach and
Enrollment Week” effort launching Monday.
A Health and Human Services policy
which took effect Jan. 1 states that legally married gay and lesbian
couples can jointly access all health plans available in every state,
even if a couple lives in a state that does not recognize their
marriage.
Illinois' ad will also air during
Sunday's Golden Globes.