(CNN) The city of Somerville, Massachusetts, will now recognize polyamorous relationships after the city council voted in favor of a new domestic partnership ordinance in a meeting last Thursday.
Councilor Lance Davis, who supported the ordinance, told CNN he believes this is the first ordinance of its kind in the country.
The domestic partnership ordinance was brought to the city council recently as a means to help residents who are not married to visit their partners who are sick with coronavirus at the hospital, according to Davis.
The domestic partnership ordinance was brought to the council by Davis to encompass this change in a virtual meeting Thursday evening.
This is Somerville's first domestic partnership ordinance, according to Davis, meaning the city now joins nearby Boston and Cambridge, which also have such ordinances.