March 14 (Bloomberg) –  Insurers participating in Obamacare must cover same-sex married couples as families, the U.S. government said.

Separately, the government said a program for sick Americans who were denied insurance coverage before this year will be extended another month, through April.

The Obama administration is seeking to maximize insurance coverage ahead of a March 31 deadline to sign up for private plans under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare. The government has regularly adjusted the law's rules, including a decision last week to allow people with health plans that pre-date Obamacare to extend them through 2016. The decisions on married gay couples and the high-risk patient group are the latest such changes.