Dad Liable for Kids Medical Bills from EOB
Tennessee child support case summary on liability for medical expenses not covered by insurance.
Elizabeth Eberbach v. Christopher Eberbach
The mother and father in this Tennessee divorce case had a long history of litigation of various disputes that arose between them. The most recent was the mother’s motion for a judgment against the father for unrecovered medical expenses. Under the 2010 parenting plan, the father was responsible for a portion of the children’s unpaid medical expenses. The father alleged that he should not have to pay because he had never been sent a copy of the bill. But the mother pointed out that the father maintained the insurance coverage, and received an “Explanation of Benefits” from the insurance company showing the balance due. She alleged that she had paid these expenses, and was entitled to a judgment of over $25,000 plus attorney’s fees and costs. The trial court agreed, and held that the mother had provided sufficient documentation. It awarded the mother a judgment of $26,096.50 for amounts paid up to the time of the hearing, as well as attorney’s fees. The father appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, and argued that this award was not appropriate.
The original order had called for the mother to submit bills within 10 days, and for them to be paid within 30 days. The father argued that because of the mother’s noncompliance, he should not have been obligated to pay.
The Court of Appeals, however, reviewed the record, and found that the mother had timely communicated the medical bills, and had sent e-mails and spreadsheets showing the amounts. She had also told the father how to get copies of the bills more quickly by contacting the providers. The appeals court agreed with the trial court that the father had no excuse for not paying. For that reason, it affirmed the judgment. It also affirmed the lower court’s award of attorney’s fees to the mother. However, it did not award her attorney’s fees for the appeal.
No. M2014-01811-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Oct. 23, 2015).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, see Child Support Collection & Enforcement in Tennessee.
See also Tennessee Parenting Plans and Child Support Worksheets: Building a Constructive Future for Your Family featuring actual examples of parenting plans and child support worksheets from real cases available on Amazon.com.
