In your divorce proceedings, the judge may have granted you and your former spouse joint legal custody over your shared child. This means that you may have an equal share in the decisions surrounding your child’s education, religion, and most notably, healthcare. While you may be ordered to share authority over your child’s medical decisions in a custody order, the judge may also order you to share financial contributions toward your child’s medical expenses in a support order. Continue reading to learn whether your child support order is supposed to cover medical expenses and how an experienced New York City child support attorney at Zimmet Law Group, P.C. can work toward a financially fit resolution for all involved parties.
Does a child support order cover medical expenses?
Essentially, a child support order is set up to cover the expenses associated with a child’s basic needs. Namely, these basic needs may entail a child’s food, clothing, housing, education, and arguably most importantly, medical services and treatments.
With that being said, if you are a noncustodial parent, the judge may order you to pay a certain percentage of your child’s medical and dental expenses. Such expenses may entail their health insurance and unreimbursed medical bills alike. For one, your child support order may require you to carry an adequate health insurance plan for your child first and then make payments toward its specific coverage and premiums. Then, it may also require you to cover all other medical bills not covered by your selected health insurance policy. Specifically, examples of uninsured medical expenses are as follows:
- The co-pays for your child’s necessary doctor’s appointments.
- The deductibles for your child’s necessary medical services and treatments.
- The necessary medications prescribed to your child by their treating physician.
- The necessary adaptive devices prescribed to your child by their treating physician.
How long does a child support order last?
Usually, the judge may order you to make monthly child support payments until your child reaches the legal age of 18. However, one of the few exceptions to this ruling is if your child has special needs. This is because additional costs may be associated with your child’s special needs that need further financial contributions until they reach the age of 23.
This is to say that your child’s special needs may pertain to a certain physical, mental, or emotional disability. Therefore, they may require your financial aid for their continual medical expenses, such as their necessary doctor’s appointments, therapy sessions, prescription medications, surgical procedures, and more.
In conclusion, there is no better time than the present to act. So please reach out to one of the skilled New York City matrimonial and family law attorneys from Zimmet Law Group, P.C. at your earliest possible convenience.