If im a stay at home mom and I haven’t had support changed in almost 8 years, will filing make my payments lower? My son is 11 but I’ve been homeschooling him the last few years. His father has “preventative only” insurance on him and the support I do get covers what my husband pays in insurance for my son every month, so his support is literally just payments for health, dental and vision insurance. The support order states that bio father must carry insurance and pay × amount every month and then 55% of all medical bills after I spend $250 OOP. My son had an ER visit and it created a substantial amount of debt that is getting paid off monthly. The “preventative only” insurance also doesn’t cover the pediatrician my son has been going to his entire life and he does not want to change doctors. It also won’t cover specialist visits he needs from said ER visit. My question is, since I’m homeschooling and work very minimal part time to avoid day care costs…will filing for support lower the payments at this point?
There’s not necessarily enough info to answer that question.
First, it depends on what state has jurisdiction over your child support case—each state has different guidelines. But it IS true that a support amount can go up or down, dependent upon the information presented at the time. For example, if you used to pay daycare for your child, but he is now of age where daycare expenses are not a factor, then yes, it is likely your support can decrease.
Second, why are you a “stay-at-home mom”? Is that something you chose VOLUNTARILY? If so, chances are the court may not view that there’s been a substantial change in circumstances that would warrant ANY change to the support order. You don’t get to voluntarily quit your job (whether to stay home or go to school or whatever reason—bc your child is entitled to monetary support from BOTH parents, just FYI) and then claim you need more support to take up any slack created by quitting your job. So there’s THAT—most states will impute you at whatever you were earning before, or at LEAST at whatever the state minimum wage is, bc there is (most times) no reason for why you cannot work and support your own child to the extent of your half of the financial responsibility.
As for the insurance portion of your question…. Your ex IS providing insurance, even if not to the extent YOU would like it to be. If your ex’s insurance doesn’t cover the doctor you want to see, then you can’t decide it’s your ex’s responsibility to pay that bill—he provided a means to see a doctor, and you chose to see one out-of-network instead.
As for the out-of-pocket expenses, you should have a provision in your support order that literally states what % of non-covered (by insurance) medical expenses your ex is responsible for vs how much YOU are responsible for. If his responsibility is 50%, and you buy an OTC medicine for $10, he owes you $5 reimbursement for that medicine. Again, the process for collecting this varies from state-to-state. You need to contact the state with jurisdiction over your support order, and find out HOW you go about getting these expenses reimbursed to you.
The alternative, of course, is that you could find a job with medical benefits that fit the criteria you want your son’s insurance to have, and then you can request your support order be modified to reflect that YOU are now providing the health insurance for the child. You get credit for that expense, as the premiums get factored into the support obligation, and the non-covered expenses will again be divided as a % to you, and a % to your ex.
Good luck, OP
If anything, filing to modify support should raise what he’s paying since he’s not even really “covering” him with his insurance. 
Can you apply for chip or medical assistance for him? I’d file contempt as well
It will depend on your laws where you live. I actually think it would increase in this situation but it’s income driven. If you’re in the United States every state has a calculator to determine what the maximum is that they can take from the child’s father.
Have you tried to get Medicaid to cover the difference
Yes you can. Just call your child support offices. They will send you paperwork to feel out
Um it’s not just on dad to support the child, you could get a full time job as well and get help with child care. Support isn’t supposed to be a means of being able to live and not work full time.
Child support is based on income. You can find a child support calculator for your state online. Be aware that if you are a capable adult they may make it as if you are making minimum wage, because you are capable. Also, credits will be given for other children, insurance, daycare. So make sure it’s worth the time.
Typically child support payments are based on income. If your ex husband’s income has increased, there’s a chance the payment may be increased. Call and talk to your local child support office. They may be able to tell you if modifying the support order would result in an increase or decrease of payment
If he’s not paying now what makes you think wasting money to modify will do?
You could technically take him to court for the excess medical expenses since he is required by court order to pay part of it. Depending on your state that could either go through family court or your child support office. You will just need to submit the medical bills/proof of payments you have already paid, etc.
It could if that’s a chance you’re willing to take. Be lucky you get any at all… most single parents are on their own. The system is outdated and mostly broken. It should be 50/50 anyway.
Why does he only need to provide preventative insurance coverage? I’ve not heard of that in Michigan.
You can also call the billing office of the clinic. Some give discounts and write-offs.
They will still count your income at minimum Wage at 40 hours a week. There is a possibility that it won’t change at all, or it could. At least when I was a sahm that is the way they calculate it. Also they could make you change your doctors to fit what his insurance covers. He is doing his part with that. It’s not the courts or his fault that is what his insurance covers and you want to use other doctors.
So you stay at home, have a working husband, the kid is covered by both mens insurance and you still want more money? How about get a job or allow your child to see his dad an equal amount of time….
Don’t take advice here go to the court file for support modification it will be what your state allows
Depends on the state you live in if you have a child support order in place you can ask for a review of the order to see if adjustments need to be made but depending on where you live that could help or hurt.
With my ex he was supposed to pay $$$. And carry insurance on my son and pay 50% of medical he only gave me $150 twice and never paid anything else he did end up with his DL taken away and in jail for awhile
Court is going to tel you to find drs in your network … like the rest of us have to.
If your son is 8, why aren’t you working while he’s at school?? Your baby daddy and husband shouldn’t have to carry the full expense of raising your son!
So child support is based on income of the parent paying it. Unless the father has had a job change that changed the amount paid it could go either way. If he took a new job that provides a lower income, they would probably lower the support payments. If he took a job with higher pay, they probably would up his support payments a few dollars to reflect that. As for the medical stuff, his father does in fact have some type of medical insurance for his son so you can’t really do much about that. But if you take him back to family court with your receipts and bank statements showing that you are the one that has been covering his medical bills fully after the $250 oop you are required to pay and he has not been following the 55% coverage of bills after that fact, he can be held in contempt of a court order and be ordered to pay what he was supposed to owe. It might not be something that you get all at once. They might allow him to make payments on it, they can garnish part of his paychecks for it or they could up his support payments to reflect the amount and you receive it that way over time.
I wouldn’t count on it, but you can check with your state about Medicaid. You may be able to carry Medicaid on him as his secondary insurance, that’s what I do. Whatever his fathers doesn’t cover the Medicaid picks up for the most part. Same order as you.
It’ll change based on the payee’s income if that has either lowered or gone up then it will change accordingly. I’m surprised that insurance isn’t an additional amount . On my case it is .
It’ll change based on the payee’s income if that has either lowered or gone up then it will change accordingly. I’m surprised that insurance isn’t an additional amount . On my case it is .
Both parents are responsible for the support of the child. He pays his share of support per court order but you want to stay home and have him pay more. Not sure how that is going to work especially after they calculate your contribution.
If he doesn’t want to change doctors… seems like what it doesn’t cover is your fault and your responsibility.
So the dad is paying child support, which you use to pay your sons Medical bills… Dad also has preventative health insurance for your son. If that insurance isn’t covering the drs office you choose to take your son to, then you should switch drs. If it doesn’t cover specialist and hospitals then you could get him insurance and pay to get double insurance for your son. Last year, our insurance was a super high deductible, we had to pay basically every specialist and most of hospital bills last year. This year, my 12 year old is still on our insurance but his dad has him on his insurance now too, so it’s double coverage. Just because you’re not working and homeschooling doesn’t mean the father should be paying extra money.
You definitely need to be sure he has the right health coverage
Just refile to reevaluate the whole order. Things have changed in 8 years time and things are more expensive now. You deserve this much. And if not, file for state medicaid and let them go after your sons father for the cost. Because then you can use them for child support services and the will enforce fully the order you already have.
Child support doesn’t change based on your income. It changes based on his income. (For the most part anyways. I’m sure there are exceptions and some states/countries may differ.)
Go to court. File for insurance for your son. Possibly change doctors.
Send your child to school and get a JOB. It isn’t solely his father’s responsibility to support him.
It’s confusing what you said. You are paying child support? Why? Who has custody of the child? What does the dad pay? I think you need to go back to court. I don’t think this is going according to your decree. The court should decide what gets paid by the father. I think somebody here is getting a free ride.
Depending on where your living. Are you able to post location to get more accurate answers. It Varys greatly dependent on your location
You’re supposed to reevaluate every 3 years…
It sounds like from what you wrote that you already have child support ordered, you need to take him back to Court for contempt if he is not providing what he was ordered, especially on the health insurance, require in to pay court costs as well
It sounds like you just need the current order enforced. You might try that first.
If you already have a court order that says he’s suppose to cover medical plus pay X amount then he is following the court order. So he’s in contempt and you need to file against him. Your X amount shouldn’t be lowered because you aren’t working. Its based off the other parents income not yours.
It sounds like you just need the current order enforced. You might try that first.
Maybe instead have your order changed so that your now husband carries the insurance on your son since it seems better than bio dad’s. I understand where you’re coming from. My ex also pays the health insurance for our daughter, but unfortunately it’s hard to find in network providers and is a really crappy basic plan. My now husband’s is much better. It stinks that there’s not basic requirements for the insurance they are required to have, such as emergency care.
They could require you to work full time.
Call your case worker. Everyone has a caseworker even if you haven’t talked to them. It doesn’t matter what the money is going to (a Dr that insurance doesn’t cover that you choose to go to) for instance.
It’s your income vs his. Your tax forms vs his. It doesn’t change based on how you are spending the money. Your case worker will be able to tell you if requesting a change is realistic if you can tell them your income and his.
Call your case worker. Everyone has a caseworker even if you haven’t talked to them. It doesn’t matter what the money is going to (a Dr that insurance doesn’t cover that you choose to go to) for instance.
It’s your income vs his. Your tax forms vs his. It doesn’t change based on how you are spending the money. Your case worker will be able to tell you if requesting a change is realistic if you can tell them your income and his.
No it will not lower payments. He will get them jacked up . Because he has not followed the original court order . Bring all your proof to court what his insurance don’t cover . What you are paying out . You want to work can’t afford daycare so you homeschool
You need to contact an attorney. Hugs!
It should go up with age!
Call your local bar association, they can recommend an attorney for a minimal consultation fee.
You should be asking your case worker, as we don’t know exactly what your order states or his income. What we do know is you choose to work very little. Many times your refusal to be a productive adult is figured in at minimum wage for a 40 hour week.
I’m very surprised by the negative comments here. Yall made a bold assumption about this woman. She literally wasn’t even asking about child support and stated that the insurance agreed by the courts is not being upheld. We do not know her financial situation. We do not know what area she lives in (it could be a place with a low cost of living), we don’t know what type of housing she has, she is homeschooling so it’s obvious she isn’t driving around all day, and she is obviously pinching pennies if a medical bill is putting her in debt. It blows my mind because you can never win in this group. Especially when it says help a mama out and yall choose to literally go the opposite way and say get a job when all she asked about was the insurance, like what? Lol anyways, mama the best thing to do is to go back to court for a re-evaluation. Good luck! 
When I asked to have the court ordered insurance to be taken care of by bio dad, child support went up by a lot. I have been carrying insurance on my daughter because “he doesn’t understand the paperwork” so he got ordered to pay more in child support to cover those expenses.
Your income had ABSOLUTELY no effect on what he has no abide by and what he has to pay
See if u can buy state health insurance. Better coverage.
Um if he isn’t paying what he is supposed to pay or covering what he is supposed to cover then you don’t need to file for child support again.
You need to file for unpaid support.
He should have to pay all that unpaid to you plus what’s due monthly.
This may depend on area but if it’s not paid by the time the kid turns 18 the kid has the right to sue the father for the unpaid support.
It depends. If your child’s fathers income has lowered then your support payments will lower. He can also file his own documents indicating he needs lower payments due to whatever expenses he has and the judge will decide if it can be lowered.
My oldest gets child support from NY court order. We moved to nc. It has now been moved to the nc child support agency it’s the same order that was done in NY it’s now moved to nc. Neither one asked for my income because I have primary physical custody of my daughter
I mean, it’s not gonna look so good you’re admitting to do the bare minimum to avoid things. At that point I’d hope the judge sides with him
Talk to a lawyer and your case worker
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Apparently too many people aren’t aware that if a family doesn’t qualify for daycare assistance, then the cost of daycare is literally equivalent to a house payment/rent. This is a dilemma too many family’s face that the vast majority one parent’s income goes straight to childcare costs. Many times it’s worth it for one parent to stay home and raise their own child vs work outside the home but have daycare do most of the child rearing. You can’t win for losing in this scenario.
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You are likely to get your payments increased rather than decreased.
Normally as a child gets older child support decreases. hence no child care due to age and school. but it solely depends on his salary. so if he don’t make as much yes it will decrease. as far as the insurance you may be able to get your order modified and he’ll have to pay more. Not sure they will compensate you for previous insurance months paid. I live in kansas and we have an office we can call that specifically takes care of child support enforcement and modifications. it don’t cost here to change it. But you can only do it for free every 5 years.
It sounds like he’s in contempt. File a petition for him to follow the court agreement. I’d get a lawyer. Legal aide may help. I believe that since you’re married your husband’s income comes into play for child support. I’m not on that or can vary by state.
Child support is based on 3 factors, typically.
- Each parents income.
- How many overnights each parent has the child.
- Medical/child care costs.
If your income has decreased and medical expenses have increased, you can file for a modification. It’s like a reevaluation of support.
I would also suggest questioning the medical coverage. If the biological father is ordered to carry insurance, he may be forced to pick up a new policy that covers preventive care as well as sick visits.
I wouldn’t think it would. I would put together documentation to show that his insurance is inadequate for your son and that he is not paying enough support cover the co-pays. The court may insist you find doctors that are covered under his plan, but they will definitely take a look at the out of pocket you are paying versus what he is supposed to be paying besides.
l get paid over $135 per hour working from home. l never thought I’d be able to do it but my buddy makes over $18745 a month doing this and she convinced me to try. The possibility with this is endless.
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My ex is supposed to have medical insurance on our son court ordered, but that differes from actual support. He pays that in addition to the medical coverage. Our son has been covered by me and/or my husband for his whole existence. Support is separate I only get $74 a week and my son is 16. It goes by percentage of what bio dad makes.
No, it should increase it if your ex has had a work wage increase or remarried. The new wife income is taken into account by the court.
Does it state both parties must carry insurance? Does he have two insurances? Or just one I’m just a little confused? Honestly, you can get him for the half he owes for insurance but they’re not going to make him change his coverage because he’s technically insured. The courts if you dont already may make you both responsible for insurance if you go back. Also, because he’s doesn’t need child care and so on they may lower the amount you do get per month. They will with proof as if he’s in any sports after school or extra curricular that cost money. You may get extra for that but if he’s not I wouldn’t count on it. Also, we’re you married before you got this agreement. Mine change when I got married and had to submit my husbands income. It really is dependent on the state you live in.
Really are u serious? U must b making pretty good $$$ to be able to stay home and homeschool ur 11 year old …count your blessings that u have a husband that supports u and a child that is not biologically his …sounds to me u sound pretty greedy…if u aren’t happy get a job like the rest of us
I Get Paid 0ver $ 109 per hour w0rking from h0me. I never thought l’d be able to do it but my colleague makes over $ 13656 a m0nth doing this and she convinced me t0 try. The possibility with this is limitless.
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Talk to an attorney. No one knows the answer - different rules for different states.
You can file for State Health Insurance to help cover what his insurance doesnt pay for. And usually the state will go after the father for child support and all that too once you file for it.
Maybe get a job in the evenings, everywhere is hiring
Talk to a lawyer; find out what your options are for your state and go from there. Several family lawyers have free consultations.
Where did she say he wasn’t paying?!? She said she hasn’t had the super MODIFIED in 8 years. She never said he wasn’t paying what was ordered. Ijs
Naomia, that’s not a thing.
The only reason they would take into account the new wife’s income, is if the ex-husband n new wife have a child of their own.
If that is the case, and the ex-hub asks for a credit for his new children (which he can do if there’s a chance his support will be increased), then they also ask for the new wife’s income in order to run a calculation to see how much it costs ex-hub to support his new children in the house FIRST, and then he gets that as a deduction iff of his income when they go to set the new support in this case. If there are additional children in his household, the support is very unlikely to increase. I say this to you as someone who worked modification for nearly 10 years.