Welcome to Maxx Family Life
Divorce Article
Divorce and Health Insurance Benefits
from: Jean MahserjianDivorce causes major issues with health insurance benefits. Many families have employer provided and/or paid for health insurance benefits that cover the entire family. It is not uncommon to see situations where the other spouse is a stay at home parent, with absolutely no access to health insurance benefits, or employed at a job with either no health insurance benefits available or those benefits available at a substantial cost. After a divorce, the spouse with the family health insurance coverage can no longer cover the other parent. They are no longer "family" members who can take advantage of one health insurance policy. How to then ensure that everyone stays insured does become an issue for negotiation and/or divorce litigation.
If both parties do not have health insurance benefits available and if the cost of obtaining those health insurance benefits for the other party after a divorce become prohibitive, there is one way to continue benefits without additional cost. That way is to enter into a separation agreement, but delay the divorce. That way, the parties actually do remain married and they can stay on the same health insurance plan even thought they are separed.
The parties can consent to waiting for one, two or more years before either one files for a divorce. While the parties will remain married, their property, custody, and support issues will be addressed in their separation agreement. Under some circumstances, this is an optimal resolution. For example, what if both parties want one spouse to remain at home for several more years with young children, but they do still want to separate and divorce? This option works for them. They can separate, agree upon getting a divorce and all of the terms that they have to agree upon, but delay the final divorce so that they can keep cost effective health insurance benefits in place.
The above example can provide some difficulties that must be discusse in detail with your divorce attorney. For example, if you separate but do not divorce, your federal tax filing status may be affected. Also, in some states, it is not as easy as in other states to enforce a separation agreement. Or, in yet other states, it is possible for one spouse to take the advantages provided by the agreement for a year or two and then go to court and seek entirley different forms of financial relief in a divorce action. Only a divorce attorney licensed to practice in your state can advise you on these issues.
Another option for couples divorce is COBRA coverage. COBRA is a federal law which mandates that a person covered under a health insurance policy be given the right to continue that coverage, at their own cost, for a set time period if certain requirements exist. For example, if you obtain a divorce and your spouse had family health insurance coverage through his employer, the employer would have to provide COBRA coverage for you after the divorce. That COBRA coverage would require that you have the same health insurance policy, although your coverage would now be individual and not family. You would have to pay the employer's cost for that individual policy.
It is not uncommon for a stay at home spouse or a spouse who has less income or employment options to obtain COBRA coverage and to negotiate that their spouse pay for that coverage for a specified time period after the divorce. In doing so, this gives the spouse who did not have coverage available some time to either obtain employment with coverage or become financially settled and able to afford their own coverage.
About the author:
Attorney Jean Mahserjian is the author of numerous websites and books devoted to helping consumers through the process of separation and divorce.
To download free excerpts from her family law books, visit: http://www.millenniumdivorce.com
Divorce News
Tim Duncan reportedly delaying divorce proceedings until after end of Spurs’ season
There is never a good time for a relationship to end or divorce proceedings to be put into place, even if the move is necessary and agreed upon by both sides. Working through a divorce trial while working as an … Continue reading →
Read more...Tim Duncan divorce may be underway during height of Spurs NBA playoffs series
By CAROLINE LEE, UPI.com Amid the Western Conference Finals series, Spurs star Tim Duncan may be getting a divorce.
Read more...How to Get Your Finances in Order Before a Divorce
Many people going through a divorce experience a combination of emotional and monetary concerns. Fortunately, they can minimize the latter by taking a hands-on approach to organizing their finances.
Read more...Divorce made easy with one-day program
Twelve times over five years, Yazmin Cruz and Marcio Hernandez went to court to try to make their uncontested divorce happen. Twelve times, their paperwork got caught in a snag, and to their great consternation, kept their marriage intact. This month, they were back in Sacramento’s William R. Ridgeway Family Relations Courthouse, for the 13th time. Once again, something came up: a child support ...
Read more...After Beta Period, Wevorce Software for Making Every Divorce Amicable Is Now Generally Available Nationwide
Wevorce , which offers an innovative technology platform and process to make every divorce amicable, announced today that after a beta period its software is now generally available to attorneys across ...
Read more...