Maryland has passed the “Employment and Insurance Equality for Service Members Act,” which generally makes some statutory provisions in the Maryland Code more broadly applicable to additional service members, including those related to eligibility for certain benefits.
For example, deployment leave is now available when an employee’s immediate family member is leaving for, or returning from, active duty outside the United States as a member of the Uniformed Services. Previously, this only applied when family members were leaving for or returning from active duty as a member of the Armed Forces. “Uniformed Services” has the same meaning it has under federal law, i.e., “the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force, Coast Guard, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Public Health Service.”
The Act is effective October 1, 2025.
