Court orders
Medical Support
Medical support may include health insurance and/or payment of medical costs. It is both parents' responsibility to provide medical support to their children. Child support orders should include medical support.
The court may order either or both parents to provide medical support. The court might not order a “low income” parent to provide medical support unless it is available for no cost or a very small cost.
Health Insurance
The court may order either parent to include the child in a health insurance policy if
- the cost of adding the children to an existing policy is not more than
5% of the parent's gross income, or
- the difference between the self-only and family plan is not more than 5% of the parent's gross monthly income.
Examples:
- Adding the children to an existing policy
- a parent's monthly income is $2,500
- 5% of the monthly income is $125
- the parent now pays $900/month for his or her employer's family health insurance
- (the coverage is for the parent and a new spouse)
- the premium after adding the child from a former spouse is $1,000
- the difference between the current premium and adding the child is $100
($1,000 - $900) and is less than 5% of the parent's income
- Difference between the self-only and family plan
- a parent's monthly income is $2,500
- 5% of the monthly income is $125
- the parent's employer offers self-only health insurance (single policy) for $600/month
- the health insurance premium for family coverage is $1,000
- the difference between the self-only and family plan is $400 ($1,000 - $600) and is
more than 5% of the parent's income
The court may order a parent to pay the premiums of a policy that the other parent has through work. If the court orders a parent to pay the premiums, the child support agency might have the parent’s employer withhold the premiums from the parent’s paycheck.
If the service area of the policy available to a parent is more than 30 minutes or 30 miles from where the children live, it might not be “reasonable” for that parent to provide health insurance. The court might order a parent to pay a share of medical costs.
If the court order requires a parent to provide health insurance for the child, and the parent is eligible for family coverage, state law requires insurance companies and self-insured employers to insure the child even if:
- The parents were never married.
- The parent applies for the insurance outside of the plan’s open enrollment period.
- The application for insurance is submitted by the other parent or the child support agency.
For questions about insurance regulations, parents should contact the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance at
oci.wi.gov, or
125 South Webster Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53702
(800) 236-8517 711
(TDD) (ask for 608-266-3586)
Medical Costs
Medical costs are uninsured health-related costs including dental and drug costs. The court may order a set dollar amount (such as $100/month) or a percent of costs (such as 50% of costs). If the court orders a set dollar amount and the child support is collected through income withholding, the medical support would also be collected through income withholding.
If you get case management services, your child support agency will enforce an order for a specific amount for medical support such as “$100 a month.”
Child support agencies are not responsible for enforcing medical orders if they are for unspecified dollar amounts, such as “half” of the medical bills. If the other parent does not pay the medical costs as ordered by the court, you or your attorney may file a motion in Family Court or a claim in Small Claims Court. If the Family or Small Claims Court then sets a dollar amount owed for unpaid medical costs, your child support agency will help collect the debt.
Birth Costs
If the Medicaid, Healthy Start, or BadgerCare Plus program paid a child’s birth expenses, the court may order the father to repay these costs if he has the ability to pay.
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