6.8.6 Child’s Health Insurance Premium Cost (Line 5b)

Child support includes medical support. Per La. R.S. 9:315.4, the court may order one of the parties to maintain health insurance for the child. In determining which party should be required to maintain such insurance, the court considers each party’s insurance policy and the parties’ work history, personal income, and other resources.

When health insurance is provided by the payor parent, a credit must be given to that parent in the amount of the premium. Thus, after one enters in the premium amount, this amount is then subtracted from the payor parent’s child support obligation on Line 8 of Worksheet A to obtain the Recommended Child Support Order.

Health insurance premiums added to the Basic Child Support Obligation do not include any amount paid by an employer or any amounts paid for coverage of persons other than the child. If more than one dependent is covered by health insurance that is paid through a lump sum dependent coverage premium and not all such dependents are the subject of the guidelines calculation, the coverage is pro-rated among the dependents covered before being entered onto the worksheet.

A Qualified Medical Child Support Order (QMCSO) may also be sought, especially if the State is involved.1  The QMCSO is an order of the court that provides for child support or health care benefit coverage to a qualified dependent (child) of a participant (parent) in a group health plan. In all cases where the child is on a medical card, the Louisiana DCFS is an indispensable party to any QMCSO being entered. Per the subrogation of rights that parents sign when they get public benefits, DCFS is a party and must be served.

Sometimes both parents provide health insurance. This comes up most often if one parent changes jobs frequently and loses the private insurance. The other parent then obtains private insurance so as to allow coverage to continue without lapse. In this situation, the court has the discretion to give credits to both parties or to only one—the one with the obligation to provide the insurance.

• 1See 29 U.S.C. § 1169; La. R.S. 46:236.8.