New York Divorce Report - New York's Divorce and Family Law Blog

Two years ago, Domestic Relations Law 177 was enacted, requiring parties to acknowledge their awareness that following the divorce they would no longer be eligible for medical insurance through their spouse on the basis of their marriage. Recently, the laws governing equitable distribution were amended to require courts to consider the loss of medical insurance as a factor in awarding maintenance and distributing the marital property. Unanticipated problems arose from the implementation of Domestic Relations Law 177 particularly because the statute mandated that all settlement or separation agreements, whenever executed,  contain specific language intended to insure that the parties were... More

The New York Times ran a front page story detailing how the availability of medical insurance has become a major consideration in the decision to divorce or to wed. In a poll conducted this spring by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a health policy research group, 7 percent of adults said someone in their household had married in the past year to gain access to insurance. The foundation cautions that the number should not be taken literally, but rather as an intriguing indicator that some Americans “are making major life decisions on the basis of health care concerns.” The issue of... More

A new law  (Assembly bill A08273A) was recently enacted that requires parties in an action for divorce to be made aware of the potential loss of their health care coverage obtained through their spouse's health insurance. The law requires that any agreement between parties in a divorce action contain the following language:  I fully understand that upon the entrance of this divorce agreement, I may no longer be allowed to receive health coverage under my former spouse's health insurance plan. I may be entitled to purchase health insurance on my own through a COBRA option, if available, other-wise I may... More