§ 19-11-28.Accident and sickness insurance coverage for children; authorization of payments of benefits; notice of termination; immunity from liability of person or entity providing access to coverage
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 1. Child Support Recovery Act · Last amended 2010 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-28
Plain-English Summary
Once a child is on a parent’s health plan under a medical support order, the other parent still has to use the coverage. This section clears the path. Under subsection (a), the signature of the medical insurance obligee — the person to whom medical support is owed — or of a department agent is a valid authorization for any insurer to process benefits and pay a health care provider or the obligee under the policy. Subsection (b) adds that a medical support order operates as an assignment to the obligee of the right to benefits under the obligor’s policy, as far as dependent coverage is available, and the obligee is subrogated to the obligor’s rights to the extent needed to pursue a claim against the insurer.
Subsection (c) deals with endings. Within ten business days after a policy established under § 19-11-27 terminates, or after the obligor’s employment ends, the employer or other entity providing access to coverage shall mail a termination notice to whoever first sent the notice of enrollment or National Medical Support Notice. The notice must give the obligor’s last known address and, if known, the address of the obligor’s new employer, so enforcement can follow the parent to the next job.
The last two subsections protect those in the middle. An employer, union or other entity providing access to coverage is immune from civil or criminal liability while complying in good faith with this section and § 19-11-27. And a plan fiduciary that makes payment under this section discharges the plan’s obligation to the extent of that payment. The section was last amended in 2010.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I file insurance claims for my child on my ex’s health plan in Georgia?
Yes. Under this section, the signature of the medical insurance obligee — the person to whom medical support is owed — is a valid authorization for the insurer to process benefits and to pay a health care provider or the obligee. A medical support order also operates as an assignment to the obligee of the right to benefits under the obligor’s policy, as far as dependent coverage is available.
Who gets notified when my ex loses the job that provided our child’s insurance?
Whoever first sent the notice of enrollment or National Medical Support Notice. Within ten business days after the policy terminates or the obligor’s employment ends, the employer or other entity providing access must mail a termination notice to that sender, with the obligor’s last known address and, if known, the new employer’s address. If the agency sent the original notice, the agency gets the termination notice.
Can the insurer refuse to deal with me because I’m not the policyholder?
This section gives you standing to deal with the insurer directly. Your signature as the medical insurance obligee is a valid authorization for any insurer to process benefits and make payments under the policy. And you are subrogated to the policyholder’s rights to the extent necessary to pursue any claim against the insurer, so you can pursue a claim against the insurer yourself.
Can an employer be sued for following a medical support notice in Georgia?
Not for good-faith compliance. Any person or entity providing access to accident and sickness coverage on behalf of a medical insurance obligor is immune from civil or criminal liability while complying in good faith with this section and § 19-11-27. The protection depends on good faith; it doesn’t cover conduct outside those sections.
If a health plan pays the parent owed medical support, does it still owe the employee?
Not for the amount it paid. Any person or entity acting as a plan fiduciary who makes payment under this section discharges the plan’s obligation to the extent of that payment. So a plan that pays benefits to the medical insurance obligee or a provider under a medical support order isn’t exposed to paying the same benefit twice.
Amendment History
Laws 1994, p. 1728, § 4; Laws 2002, p. 1247, § 8; Laws 2010, Act 410, § 5, eff. July 1, 2010.