Recently Congress has attempted to address the issue of healthcare coverage for children by
passing legislation to provide for healthcare coverage for minor children who might otherwise be
denied health insurance benefits. With the increased prevalence of job terminations, and
geographic relocation, state Medicaid resources often become the source of funding for health
care benefits for children, or, more tragically, children frequently go without appropriate health
care coverage.
Through the use of Qualified Medical Child Support Orders "QMCSOs", a Court may issue an
order requiring a health benefits plan, available to a parent through their employer or union, to
provide coverage for a minor child as an independent participant in the plan. Such an order
guarantees the child certain rights under COBRA (Federal legislation guaranteeing the extension
of group benefits to a separating employee after termination or to a divorcing spouse after
divorce) as well as providing a child with coverage which might otherwise be denied under the
terms of the healthcare plan. Such orders are generally entered at the time of a divorce, but they
may be subsequently modified by the Court to serve the needs and interests of a child. One
added benefit, in this time of increasing federal deficits, is that QMCSO's shift the burden from public resources to private healthcare plans available to parents.
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