Rules regarding health insurance

Colorado state law provides a few helpful rules on health insurance after a divorce. The law has a prohibition on an insured spouse who is going through a divorce from changing or canceling a family insurance policy without advance notice and consent of the other party.

If you carry the insurance for your family, be aware that you can’t drop your former spouse without his or her consent. You should also be aware that changes you make to your insurance plan could affect your coverage or any coverage you have for your children.

Absent a separate agreement, health insurance that you have through your ex-spouse will generally be cancelled at the end of month following a divorce. If your spouse provided the insurance, it may be possible to get temporary coverage through your former spouse’s employer using COBRA. If you do need to use COBRA coverage, you will likely be responsible for the payments, but your insurance plan will remain intact.

If you have questions about what may or may not happen to your health insurance coverage, contact your attorney.

How will divorce affect your health insurance?

Many married couples share health insurance policies through a primary spouse’s employer. After a divorce, that coverage will likely terminate for the secondary spouse and possibly for the children. If you’re worried about what will happen to your health insurance, here are a few ways to ensure you can maintain coverage:

1.     Review your health care plan with your attorney: Learn the ins and outs of your coverage in case you need to find a new plan. You may also want to talk to your health insurance agent to discuss the implications of divorce on the existing plan.

2.     Consult your attorney about whether it makes sense to obtain a Legal Separation, rather than a Divorce, if maintaining your current health insurance policy is a priority.  Some families continue to exist on a plan even after a Legal Separation, if it works best for all parties, and if the insurance company will allow it.

3.     Discuss alternative plans with your attorney. If children are involved, be sure that you understand who will be responsible for insuring the kids, who will pay for co-pays, medications, etc. Be as specific as possible so that in case of an emergency, you won’t have to fight over insurance details.

4.     Be prepared to find new coverage. Even if your divorce is not finalized during an open enrollment period, the new health care law (the Affordable Care Act) provides for a special enrollment period through the health care exchange when there is a qualifying event, like a divorce. However, there is a limited time to secure coverage in this way, and a change must be made within 30 days before the date of divorce or 60 days after the divorce.