FAMILY LAW ARTICLES

Health care uncertainty leading some couples to delay divorce

When a couple decides their marriage is no longer working, many things can impact their decision regarding when to get divorced. Some things could lead to a couple deciding to delay getting divorced. This includes certain kinds of financial uncertainty.

One thing there is a fair amount of uncertainty around right now is the future of health care in the United States. There have been efforts to get rid of or change the Affordable Care Act. It is still unclear what the ultimate results of these efforts will be.

Among the individuals that could be greatly impacted by what ultimately happens with U.S. health care law are divorcing individuals. A major thing a divorce can lead to is a person searching for new health care coverage. This is because a divorce typically results in a person ultimately losing the ability to be covered under a spouse’s health care plan. What specific laws are in place regarding health care coverage can impact what sorts of options, challenges and opportunities are present for a divorcing person when it comes to finding new health insurance coverage following a divorce.

So, the uncertainty currently around the future of the Affordable Care Act can create some uncertainty for divorcing individuals when it comes to their future health insurance situation. This has led some divorcing individuals to postpone getting divorced.

As this underscores, health insurance matters are among the financial matters that can be very significant in a divorce. There are a variety of different divorce issues in which insurance-related considerations could play a role. This includes alimony issues. Among the legal guidance divorcing individuals can seek out from experienced divorce attorneys is guidance on health insurance issues connected to their divorce and how they may want to factor such issues into the various decisions connected to the divorce, including decisions related to divorce timing.

Source: Money, “People Are Stalling Their Divorce So They Don’t Lose Health Care,” Elizabeth O’Brien, July 24, 2017