Military Divorce and Healthcare Benefits
Members of the armed services have some special considerations in play when they are going through a divorce. Health care, in particular, is often a top concern for non-military spouses of military members. Military life often involves moving from duty station to duty station. While it is not always the case, this frequent moving often inhibits the non-military spouse from pursuing fulltime employment.
When a spouse is reliant on their soon-to-be ex’s healthcare benefits, they may not know how to proceed. Will they continue to receive coverage? This article generally introduces readers to next steps. Hiring an experienced divorce attorney can help you understand how you and your children can continue to benefit from health insurance.
Military Options
A non-military spouse of a military member who is receiving military health care benefits has two options for continuing military healthcare post-divorce: Tricare, or the Continued Health Care Benefit Program.
TRICARE
TRICARE is a no-cost resource available to active duty service members, retirees and their family members. When a couple divorces, the non-military spouse may continue to receive TRICARE coverage under certain circumstances:
- The divorcing spouses were married for at least 20 years during which time the military spouse was in active service.
- The non-military former spouse has not remarried.
- The non-military former spouse has no other medical benefits. If they do have other medical benefits, that is considered the primary health carrier. TRICARE, then, addresses any remaining bill amount.
TRICARE Limitations
If the above criteria are not met, there are certain circumstances where some TRICARE coverage may be accessible to a divorced, former-military spouse. If, for instance, the marriage contained 20 years of military service, 20 years of marriage, and between 15 but less than 20 years of overlap of service and marriage, TRICARE may be available as secondary insurance for one year from the date of the granted divorce.
If you are divorced and do not qualify for TRICARE coverage, you will be dropped immediately from receiving TRICARE medical benefits. The children of the military spouse will continue to qualify for TRICARE coverage, as the divorce does not diminish a parent-child relationship.
Continued Health Care Benefit Program for conversion coverage.
The Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) can aid divorcing spouses who will lose medical benefit access due to their divorce. After divorce and losing military medical benefits a divorced spouse can purchase this type of “conversion” coverage for 18 to 36 months.
A former spouse can, under certain conditions, continue on the CHCBP past 36 months. The criteria to be met include:
- They were enrolled in TRICARE at the time of the divorce
- They are not covered under any other health insurance
- They do not remarry before reaching age 55,
Qualifying under the CHCBP can be complicated and confusing. There are many deadlines, forms, and coverage options you need to be aware of. The experienced divorce attorneys at Cardwell, Steigerwald Young can help. If you do not qualify for continued benefits through either of the options above, you may want to consider negotiating medical care and expenses as part of support to be included in your divorce settlement. Our experienced team can help.
Contact Cardwell, Steigerwald Young
Contact the dedicated San Francisco military divorce attorney at Cardwell Steigerwald Young to discuss your options and strategize best steps moving forward.
Sources:
militaryonesource.mil/relationships/separation-divorce/dealing-with-military-divorce/
orbes.com/advisor/legal/divorce/military-divorce/
