Texas Child Support and Health Care Coverage
When establishing support for the child, the child’s access to healthcare coverage will need to be analyzed before finalizing a support order. Every case involving a child must state how the child’s healthcare coverage will be provided for.
Typically, the parent ordered to pay child support also bears the cost of healthcare coverage. Cost, accessibility, and the quality of healthcare coverage available, will all be taken into consideration in determining how healthcare coverage will be provided for the child. If a parent who has a job with healthcare coverage available at a reasonable cost, the court is mandated to order that parent to include the child on their healthcare plan. If the parent ordered to pay child support does not have insurance available and the primary does, the court may order child support in addition to the amount set by the guidelines, to cover the healthcare cost for the child.
If healthcare coverage is not available to either parent at reasonable cost through their job, the court may look to alternative coverage other sources. For example, if the child qualifies for a governmental assistance program, the parent may be ordered to insure coverage through such program if the coverage is available at a reasonable cost. If no healthcare coverage is available at a reasonable cost between the parents, the court must order the parent responsible for making support payments, to pay an additional amount as cash medical support.
In determining whether healthcare coverage is obtainable at a reasonable cost, the court will look to see if the total amount paid for medical support exceeds 9% of the parent’s gross annual resources. The gross annual resources of a parent are determined before making any deductions for certain expenses.
Contact our team of family law attorneys for more information about this unique issue involving child support.