The complexities and emotional stress of divorce can make it easy to overlook certain issues like your insurance coverage. Your divorce may impact your insurance policies, perhaps even causing you to lose coverage. So taking a closer look at your insurance and investigating options to remain covered may be of benefit before finalizing your divorce settlement.
Just because your marriage is ending does not mean you should experience the loss of your health insurance. Forbes describes some options for divorcing spouses that could maintain their coverage or to help them seek new coverage as they work through divorce.
COBRA coverage
Perhaps your spouse has a health plan sponsored by an employer that also covers you. You could lose that coverage after your divorce. However, thanks to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, if you do not earn an income, you may continue to claim coverage under your spouse’s plan for as long as three more years. Using COBRA is a temporary measure, however. You will likely have to look for an individual policy to cover you before your COBRA coverage expires.
Life insurance
You might feel comfortable with the amount of spousal support you will receive from your spouse. If your ex dies, however, the support will end, which could leave you in a tight financial situation depending on your circumstances. If you want to make a provision for yourself in the event your former spouse dies, you may consider taking out a life insurance policy.
Some divorce settlements require life insurance for one or both spouses. If your settlement includes life insurance, you or your spouse may own the policy. Still, it might be better for you to maintain ownership of the policy to help ensure there are no changes to the policy without your consent and that you can make premium payments to ensure the policy remains active.
There is a lot to consider throughout the divorce process and your health insurance is one of them. Hopefully, you wouldn’t need the insurance but you will be glad you took the time to ensure your coverage in the event of a post-divorce medical emergency.