health insurance after divorce

[melinda510]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas


My husband and I are planning on filing for divorce soon and I'll be meeting with an attorney in the next couple of weeks, but I had a question I wanted to get some feedback on before I meet with them. Can a divorced spouse be covered on medical insurance with a court order? I'm an independent contractor so I don't have medical insurance available to me through employment. My insurance is through my husband's employer. He doesn't mind keeping me on the policy if legally allowed, so I was just curious whether or not the judge can order that I remain on the policy for a period of time after the divorce is final.

Thanks

 

[mistoffolees]

Very few insurance policies would allow this. Group plans allow the member and family members, but rarely (IF EVER) other adults who are not family members.

If no insurance is available where you work (and assuming you don't want to get a different job), then you'll need a private policy. You could then ask for your stbx to pay for the private policy - or pay you enough money so that you can pay for your policy. Depending on your health, this may not be terribly expensive. However, it's unreasonable to expect him to pay for your insurance forever. If you were talking about a few years before Medicare kicks in, that would be one thing. But just expecting permanent coverage is a problem.

 

[melinda510]

definitely not expecting it to be permanent. I was just thinking the remainder of the year. He doesn't mind keeping me on the policy if its legal, because it wouldn't cost him anything. He has a family policy and because he has his three children on the policy as well, removing me won't decrease the premium. I'll ask the attorney about it and I know you can ASK for anything, doesn't mean you'll get it. I was just curious if that's even something a judge would consider or it was an absolute NO.

Thanks!

 

[LdiJ]

definitely not expecting it to be permanent. I was just thinking the remainder of the year. He doesn't mind keeping me on the policy if its legal, because it wouldn't cost him anything. He has a family policy and because he has his three children on the policy as well, removing me won't decrease the premium. I'll ask the attorney about it and I know you can ASK for anything, doesn't mean you'll get it. I was just curious if that's even something a judge would consider or it was an absolute NO.

Thanks!

Again, your problem isn't with the judge. Its with the employer and the insurance company. A judge cannot force the employer or the insurance company to allow you to remain on the policy if its against their rules.

 

[melinda510]

I was just reviewing the policy guidelines and don't see anything specific. Guess we can always ask and see.

Thanks for the info.

 

[cbg]

Contrary to what some of the posters here will tell you, MANY employer-sponsored policies will allow a divorced spouse to remain on the policy. In my state it is mandatory. However, I have multi-state experience and I have NEVER seen a plan that did not. That's in 30 years of administering employer sponsored group policies in roughly half the states.

 

[melinda510]

thanks for the input. I didn't see anything specifically about it in the policy, so I guess that gives me some hope. It's a HUGE corporate policy administered out of Georgia. I guess it's best to proceed and just ask the judge to consider an order for it and then present it to the insurance company. In your experience, was there an amount of time where it would be cut off?

 

[LdiJ]

Contrary to what some of the posters here will tell you, MANY employer-sponsored policies will allow a divorced spouse to remain on the policy. In my state it is mandatory. However, I have multi-state experience and I have NEVER seen a plan that did not. That's in 30 years of administering employer sponsored group policies in roughly half the states.

I can tell you that it doesn't happen in my state at all. A divorced spouse is allowed to elect and pay for Cobra coverage for the length of time allowed, but otherwise, no.

 

[mistoffolees]

I can tell you that it doesn't happen in my state at all. A divorced spouse is allowed to elect and pay for Cobra coverage for the length of time allowed, but otherwise, no.

Same with my state. Divorce makes one eligible for COBRA, but a divorced spouse can not stay on the policy.

Frankly, I'd be surprised if very many states allow it.

 

[cbg]

Can you show me specific statutes that prohibit it? This is EXACTLY what I do for a living and I will be very surprised if you can.

 

[mistoffolees]

Can you show me specific statutes that prohibit it? This is EXACTLY what I do for a living and I will be very surprised if you can.

As was explained above, it's not that it's prohibited. It's that few plans allow for it. It is entirely up to the plan administrator whether they'd allow it - and I've never seen one that did.

 

[cbg]

Now that's an answer I can accept. But the way the answers were worded made it sound that the law did not PERMIT a divorced spouse to stay on the plan and that is just plain wrong.

The employers who write it into the plan that a divorced spouse is not eligible are being very shortsighted, given the number of times a court order requires one spouse to cover the other. I think you'll find that it's permitted more often than you believe. As I said, my experience is not limited to Massachusetts (where, by the way, the law REQUIRES a divorced spouse to be allowed to remain on the plan) but covers a significant part of the country.

 

[IrishLady47]

Speaking of country-wide, none of the health plans under the Federal Employees Health Benefits plans allow a divorced spouse to remain on the employees's policy after the divorce--no matter what a state court says in their decree. After divorce, the former spouse can have coverage under COBRA, convert to an individual policy with the same company, or apply under the Spouse Equity Act for their own FEHBP coverage (must be awarded part of the federal employee's pension to be eligible).

Since the plan doesn't address it, it would be best to ask for it in the court order and then present it to the health plan. They may well honor it, but will not be forced to do so unless it is covered in the contractual agreement with the company.

 

[frylover]

Now that's an answer I can accept. But the way the answers were worded made it sound that the law did not PERMIT a divorced spouse to stay on the plan and that is just plain wrong.

The employers who write it into the plan that a divorced spouse is not eligible are being very shortsighted, given the number of times a court order requires one spouse to cover the other. I think you'll find that it's permitted more often than you believe. As I said, my experience is not limited to Massachusetts (where, by the way, the law REQUIRES a divorced spouse to be allowed to remain on the plan) but covers a significant part of the country.

So what about people who change spouses as often as they change their underwear. Your state requires insurance companies to cover all 2, or 3, or 5 (or more) ex-spouses for the rest of their lives

 

[cbg]

No, that isn't what I said. The state does not require that the employee be allowed to carry multiple spouses on the plan. It requires that former spouses be considered eligible employees.