Separated or divorced parents and their children may be eligible for more support after September 1. A law took effect that requires parents paying child support to provide dental insurance to their children. Parents who pay child support have been legally required to pay for health care insurance in addition to other living expenses. Many supporting parents already voluntarily paid for dental insurance before this new law.
This support obligation may not take effect immediately for every parent, however, because of court rulings. New court cases requiring child support will probably require dental insurance payments.
There are over 1.5 million open child support cases in Texas. Where child support payments are already ongoing and a parent receiving support does not experience a separate financial change, adding dental coverage will not be automatic. Parents will have to file for a modification of their child support case. The new law requires supporting parents to cover dental insurance at a reasonable cost. This should not exceed over 1.5 percent of the annual income of the parent paying child support.
An experienced family law attorney can help ensure that supporting parents pay for this coverage or assure that this requirement is imposed legally and reasonably. Legal representation may also help assure that child support orders and modifications are fair, reasonable and take care of the children’s other daily needs such as education, food and housing. If you have questions regarding whether this law will affect your child support obligations, don’t hesitate to contact an attorney.
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