Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Can I have my exwife on my Health and life insurance policy


Can I have my exwife on my Health and life insurance policy?
My wife and I are getting a no default divorce here in PA. We have a one year old child. I currently have her and my child on my health and life insurance policies. For the sake of my daughter, would I be able to keep my wife and daughter on the policies at least until my daughter is 18? I do not mind paying for my wife, as she can barely afford one of her own. 
Insurance - 4 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
your daughter is a dependent so you will be able to. And in most states you might not have a choice. here in texas the one who pays child support has to also provide insurance. and the fact you want to provide insurance for your ex wife is so amazing! not many men are like you. as your insurance agent, he'll help you out with all the info. =o)
2 :
Your health insurance provider may not allow you to include an ex-wife on your policy unless it is a legal requirement that you do so (if it is written into your divorce decree.) Check with a divorce attorney who is familiar with laws in your state to see exactly what needs to be done.
3 :
If you have it written in your QDRO order, (Qualified domestic relations order) then in most cases you can continue to have her covered. Check with your benefits department in HR to be sure. If not, your wife could get continued coverage under a program called COBRA, but it tends to be expensive.
4 :
No, on the health insurance. It's against the tax laws. On the date the divorce is final, you MUST delete your non-spouse from your group health insurance policy. The DAUGHTER can stay on it. On the life insurance, you can name anyone you want - your ex-wife, the mailman, me. It doesn't matter.
5 :
If your health insurance is through your employer, you need to notify them of the date your divorce became final. Failure to do so is insurance fraud and can have penalties. Many employers are doing dependent eligibility audits to catch people who haven't removed ex-spouses and/or are claiming ineligible dependents on their group health benefits. You could create a huge mess by trying to keep your ex-wife on the policy. If/when your benefits administrator finds out that you got divorced, they can retroactively cancel her back to the date the divorce was final. Any payments made to medical providers on her behalf can be recouped, and your ex-wife will be liable for the full billed charges of all the outstanding medical claims. (Not to mention that the penalties to you could include losing your job for defrauding your employer!) You wouldn't be doing her any favors if that happened, because it would be too late for her to obtain other coverage at that point. She'd be stuck. If you wish to help her obtain coverage now, then you/she can contact an agent to see about purchasing a policy for her. And make sure to notify your employer's benefits office of the date the divorce becomes final.





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