Other Health Related Insurance
Other Health Related Insurance
As briefly discussed in our article entitled: "Child Support Worksheet Mandatory Deviations: Health Insurance," in Georgia there are two allowable deviations that may be made other presumptive child support amount due to payment of health related insurance premiums on behalf of a minor child: the Health Insurance deviation and the Other Health Related Insurance deviation. Although these deviations may seem duplicative, there are very important differences between these two child support deviations. The major differences between these two deviations are highlighted in the table below. However, for a more detailed discussion of the Health Insurance deviation, see our section regarding this topic.
The crux of the Other Health Related Insurance deviation is that it applies to premiums paid by either parent on behalf of the minor child involved for health related insurance like vision insurance or dental insurance. O.C.G.A. §19-6-15(i)(2)(C). In essence, this deviation provide parents who pay such expenses the ability to reflect these payments on the child support worksheet, even though they may not be able to take advantage of the health Insurance deviation. O.C.G.A. §19-6-15(h)(2). To take advantage of the deviation based on the payment of vision or dental insurance premiums on behalf of the minor child or children for whom child support is being ordered, the parent seeking the deviation should include a positive or negative number in the appropriate field on line 3 of Schedule E. As this deviation directly impacts the final child support amount, it is essential to ensure the deviation amount is accurate. For example: Father is non-custodial parent and Mother is custodial parent. The presumptive child support based on each parents combined gross income is $1,500 per month for one child. If Father pays $30 per month for Child's portion of dental and vision insurance, and seeks a deviation for such payments, Father's child support obligation would be reduced to $1,470 if approved by the presiding court.
