People going through a Florida divorce frequently ask expert Florida divorce lawyers if they will lose their health insurance if they get divorced.

Usually this situation involves the person who is reliant on the other spouse for health insurance. Typically, the other spouse carried the insurance for the family through work. What happens if you get divorced and no longer qualify for the spousal coverage under the employer's plan.

A federal law called "COBRA" requires that your present insurance company cannot reject you from coverage for three years after the divorce. They are required to give you exactly the same coverage as you have now.

A problem is that the cost of the coverage may be higher because you are no longer getting the family coverage discount which is less per person than if there were just one person on the policy. Additionally, the employer may presently be charging you less than the actual cost as a benefit to the employee. They will no longer do that when you are no longer related to their employee. One small additional increase (less than ten percent) in the premium is a result of the fact that the law allows the insurance company to charge you a premium of slightly higher than the employer is paying.

Bottom Line: Talk to your expert divorce lawyer and your insurance company about the cost of health insurance before you reach a final settlement of your Florida divorce.

(copyright Stann Givens 2009)