Ann Meitzen and Joanne Pedersen
Waterford, Conn.

The Supreme Court's decision to overturn DOMA last year was a game-changer for Meitzen and Pedersen.

The two have been together for almost 16 years but were struggling to make ends meet ever since Meitzen became sick with a lung disease and had to quit her job.

Pedersen had already retired, and has great retirement benefits and a comprehensive medical plan -- thanks to the time she spent working at the Office of Naval Intelligence. But Meitzen was unable to access any of those benefits because the federal government didn't consider her Pedersen's spouse.

Here's where Meitzen and Pedersen were a year ago

As a result, Meitzen started tapping into her Social Security benefits early and was regularly spending more than half her roughly $800 in monthly benefits on medical costs.

That all changed as soon as DOMA was struck down, however. In August of last year, Meitzen was added to Pedersen's health insurance -- saving the couple around $400 per month on premiums. Meitzen no longer has to pay the $2,500 deductible she had to pay under her own insurance plan, and the copays and prescription costs are substantially lower.

"Financially, it has been better than expected," said Pedersen.

Even more exciting, Meitzen has now been symptom-free for three consecutive months -- the longest stint since 2008.