Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts
Medical/Dental Insurance
My divorce degree & recent (2 yrs) court order states ex is to carry me & kids on his dental ins. Recently I found out his job changed ins companies, I emailed his co to get new cards. Spoke w/someone new & I used the word 'x'. She informed me that I have been carried wrong all along as an ex I cannot be on his ins - divorce papers or not -- I told her I gave divorce paper yrs ago. She stated IRS regulations prevent my coverage not x's, tax depend only as premiums withheld pre-tax basis IRS regulations - children are not his tax dependants?? Before I go back to her I need to know my rights. She took me off as of 2/1/08 and stated she could go back and take me off back to the beginning and I would be responsible for repaying any services. I use to carry medical ins because x changed jobs so often & left us uninsured. I carried x for 5+ yrs until new employer asked for divorce papers & then wasn't allow to carry x because divorce said he is suppose to carry . I carry medical now (me&kids) x carries dental - new order. Shouldn't his employer have to carry me because original divorce and recent court order states. She is sending out cobra ltr. If we go to dentist w/out cards/notice from x will he be responsible
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Medical/Dental Insurance
The HR person is wrong. First, your ex should deal with this. if he does not, I would suggest you contact your original divorce attorney and if need be he will go to court and get an order against the insurer and the employer.
It does not matter who takes your children as tax dependents, the children are your ex's legal dependents.
If you need assistance please feel free to contact me.
Re: Medical/Dental Insurance
I differ to a degree with the prior answer.
If am am reading your answer correctly, you have been divorced for over five (5) years. It sounds like it may be closer to ten (10) years.
The court can order you to be on your ex's insurance at the time of divorce, and the EXISTING insurer at time of divorce MUST honor this. However, a NEW insurer need not honor this. When his company changed insurers, the new company did not have to consider you a wife -- as you were -not-.
Your ex then had the right to inform you and let you a. pay the high premium to stay on, or b. get your own health insurer.
Your ex -could- be ordered to get you on a rider, arguably, even at his own expense, and his insurer would probably honor the order -- so long as you paid the cost. The cost would not be worth it, in most cases -- it would be quite high.
The kids are his dependents and thus insurable under his policy so long as they meet the correct definitions of being dependent. This usually means both "under 23, unmarried, and in school full time," to be simplistic, though the new Massachusetts law gives an added to years.
I'm not sure where "tax dependents" fits in here. Kids need not be tax dependents to be an insurable dependent under Massachusetts law and standard insurance contracts.
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