What Are the Most Important Insurance Issues I Need to Address During Divorce?

It is easy to lose sight of all the many bureaucratic issues that have to be tracked and taken care of during the divorce process. However, it is extremely important to review insurance policies.  In particular, in order to ensure you understand how insurance coverage may change once your divorce is finalized and how you can prepare for that.

The two main types of insurance that are the most relevant during divorce are health and life insurance. Below, we discuss some important factors that you need to keep in mind when it comes to ensuring that you are taken care of with respect to both:

Health Insurance

With health insurance, it is common for one spouse, while married, to be covered under the other spouse’s plan. The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) was passed in 1986 to help spouses after divorce in continuing their health coverage under their ex’s plan for up to three years after. Yet, while COBRA can be convenient in terms of continuing your current type of coverage, it is no longer necessarily the most cost-effective solution. It can also become impractical because it has a three-year time limit.

Now that the Affordable Care Act has been passed, more affordable health insurance options may very well be available for those who either don’t have an employer-sponsored health plan or do not make enough income to purchase their own private plan. It is worth exploring his options with your divorce attorney and any other financial advisors.

Life Insurance

Life insurance is also important consideration during divorce, especially if you are expecting to receive spousal or child support. While spousal support typically ends if the payer passes away, life insurance payments can be sustained for as long as there is a policy on the payer. In addition, you and your divorce attorney can work to ensure that life insurance is a required part of your divorce settlement. However, it needs to be maintained in a way such as to ensure that you retain control so that you do not risk changes being made or lapses and payments occurring. Life insurance also always needs to be put in place before the divorce is finalized, just in case the payer spouse turns out to be uninsurable. If this is the case, you and your attorney can make appropriate modifications to the divorce agreement. In addition, in some cases, the life insurance policy can be considered a marital asset that must be addressed in the divorce proceedings.

Contact Our Florida Divorce Attorneys to Find Out More

Like any other issue in divorce, insurance policies can seem overwhelming to deal with. However, also like everything else, it is important to be aware of all existing policies and their details so that you know what you have to do in order to ensure that you receive what you need in your divorce settlement.

If you have any questions about insurance policies during divorce, contact our experienced Orlando divorce attorneys at Greater Orlando Family Law today to find out how we can help.

Resource:

forbes.com/sites/catherineschnaubelt/2019/04/29/insurance-issues-to-consider-in-a-divorce/#35ba37b1b5d1

https://www.orlandolegal.com/the-most-important-changes-to-make-once-your-divorce-decree-is-final/