Medical support is one of the three components of a child support award in Minnesota. Basic support and child care support are the other two.
Although it’s often referred to as medical support, this typically includes both medical and dental costs.
Medical support typically refers to two types of costs. The first type is routine medical and dental costs most typically in the form of insurance premiums.
The second type is out of pocket medical expenses. This can include co-pays, deductibles, and , uninsured expenses.
The guideline amount for medical support is based on both parents’ income.
Calculating Medical Support
The guideline medical support amount is easy to calculate. It is based on the parents’ combined income. Parental income for child support is shortened to “PICS”.
Each parent’s income is added together. Each parent’s percent of the total is then used to determined his or her percentage responsibility for medical support.
Medical support is different from basic support in that the custodial parent always receives basic support from the non-custodial parent.
Medical support, on the other hand, is based on actual expenses incurred. Medical and dental expenses are typically paid out of pocket by one parent and the other parent must reimburse the paying parent his or her PICS share. It does not matter which parent pays initially unless the court order specifies this.
Medical Support Example
Imagine a mother makes $6,000 per month and a father makes $4,000 per month. Their combined income for support is $10,000. Mother’s PICS percentage is 60%. Father’s PICS percentage is 40%.
If, for example, father paid a medical premium for the children of $300 per month, mother would need to reimburse him 60% of that amount, or $180 per month ($180 = 60% of $300).
If, on the other hand, mother took the children to the doctor and had $100 in co-pays for a month, father would need to reimburse mother $40 ($40 = 40% of $100).
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