This is what leadership looks like.

In a series of announcements over the past several weeks, the Obama administration has taken critical steps to protect LGBT Americans. These groundbreaking changes in U.S. policy are making it easier for LGBT Americans to earn a living, provide for themselves and their families, and pursue health and happiness.

Health and science win over prejudice and bias
At the end of May, in a historic decision, an independent board overturned Medicare exclusions of transition-related care.

This ruling comes decades after Medicare adopted a National Coverage Determination that categorically excluded what it called “Transsexual Surgery” from Medicare coverage regardless of a person’s individual medical conditions and needs.  This policy categorically excluded coverage for any gender transition-related surgical procedures that are medically necessary for transgender people.

In a tremendous victory for transgender Americans, this policy was determined to be unreasonable and contrary to medical science.

The end of this unreasonable exclusion means that transgender patients on Medicare will be able to seek individualized review of the medical necessity of the specific procedure they need, just like others seeking coverage for medical treatment.

Taking care of all of our federal employees
In another victory for transgender Americans, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced that it will lift the ban prohibiting health insurance carriers from covering transition-related care for transgender federal employees.

Beginning with the 2015 plan year, OPM is removing the requirement that Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) brochures exclude “services, drugs, or supplies related to sex transformations.”

While this policy does not require FEHB carriers to provide transgender-related health care, it is an important step in closing the gap in access to care by removing discriminatory and harmful exclusions.

An executive order to protect hardworking Americans
Over one million LGBT workers across the country will soon be protected at work thanks to an executive order by President Obama.

The President’s promised executive order will require that all companies who contract with the federal government must not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. This will extend orders already in place that ban employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin among all companies who do over $10,000 in business with the government in any one year.

This historic announcement by the Obama administration will be the single largest expansion of LGBT workplace protections in our country’s history. We're working with our national partners to ensure that this executive order protects LGBT workers to the fullest extent possible.

With the current state of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act in the Senate, this order will protect LGBT employees now and will continue to protect employees at businesses that might be too small or that might otherwise be exempted by ENDA when it eventually passes.

Taking care of families
Same-sex married couples will now be able to deal with serious medical and family situations without the fear of losing their jobs.

In light of the Supreme Court’s decision striking down the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in United States v. Windsor, the Department of Labor has announced that the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) will now extend protections to all eligible employees in legal same-sex marriages.

The proposed rule will change the FMLA definition of “spouse” to include married same-sex couples regardless of whether the state in which the couple resides recognizes same-sex marriage. The eligibility for FMLA protections will now be based on the law of the place where the marriage was entered into, allowing all legally married opposite-sex and same-sex couples to have federal family leave rights.

This is an important extension of the DOMA decision and ensures that all individuals are able to care for their families.

With a Congress that appears unwilling to advance any measure of protection for LGBT individuals and families, the Obama administration is stepping up to ensure that all Americans have the same chance to earn a living, be safe in their communities, take care of their families, and pursue health and happiness.

These announcements are critical steps toward creating an America that celebrates LGBT people and extends to them the fairness and equality we all deserve.