Support and promote positive features of social ties (e.g., supportive interactions, healthy lifestyle norms). For example, Health and Human Service’s Healthy Marriage Initiative is designed to promote positive marital interactions that may foster mental and physical health of couples and their children. This initiative uses a multifaceted approach, including public awareness campaigns on responsible parenting and the value of healthy marriages, as well as educational and counseling services delivered through local organizations such as schools and faith-based organizations. This goal should also speak to policies that deny marriage to same-sex couples. The absence of legal marriage may reduce the benefits of committed partnerships for the health of individuals in gay and lesbian relationships (Herek 2006; King and Bartlett 2006; Wienke and Hill 2009).
