One of the issues the new proposals to the Indiana Child Support Guidelines attempt to address are new requirements of the ACA. The ACA requirements actually have existed for tax years 2014 and after. In drafting custody and support agreements, parties should address tax exemptions, health insurance coverage for children and uninsured medical. Under the ACA if one party is to carry health insurance on the child and the other party claims the exemption, the party who claims the exemption can be penalized and for each month in which there is not insurance coverage for the child which meets the requirements of the ACA. Many orders contain language that Party X must maintain insurance if the insurance if available at a reasonable cost through their employer and is reasonable accessible to the child. The ACA does not limit the coverage to that reasonably available through the employer. The ACA requires the party to obtain private insurance, insurance through the Healthcare Exchange or one of the taxpayer subsidized plans. One place to start to look as to whether a person is required to carry the insurance even if not required by the order they should look here. http://www.irs.gov/uac/Am-I-required-to-make-an-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Payment%3F
Your client should also look here for additional information. http://www.irs.gov/Affordable-Care-Act/Individuals-and-Families/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Calculating-the-Payment
To see the penalties for not having coverage look here. https://www.healthcare.gov/fees-exemptions/fee-for-not-being-covered/
Submitted by: Richard A. Mann, Richard A. Mann PC Attorneys at Law, www.rmannlawoffice.com