Can I remove my husband from my health insurance benefits or make him pay half the costs since he has walked out on me?
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Can I remove my husband from my health insurance benefits or make him pay half the costs since he has walked out on me?
My husband left me several months ago. He is co-habitating with another woman and is not paying towards our joint mortgage or bills. He is covered under my health plan, through my job, which I contribute toward from my pay. Can I remove him, or expect him to pay half the cost of the family insurance? If he was not on the plan I could get single coverage at a reduced cost to myself.
Asked on May 6, 2011 under Family Law, New Jersey
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
1) You can't remove your husband during this policy term. The insurance company, and the law, don't care about the details of your relationship, only its legal status, which has not changed--he is still married to you.
2) You should be able to remove him during the next (re)enrollment period, though you ought to speak to a family or divorce law attorney first.
3) If you should divorce him, then it may be the case that the costs you have borne for him will be taken into account when distributing marital assets (i.e. you may get a larger share); this is something else to discuss with a family law attorney. It is doubtful that you can recover these costs outside of a divorce.
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