Can my employer force me to take their company paid health insurance?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can my employer force me to take their company paid health insurance?
Asked on February 21, 2011 under Employment Labor Law, Nebraska
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
No. An employer may not make someone take health insurance if they don't want to, and if you don't take it, they can't take the employee portion of the premium out of your salary or wages. People have a right to decline coverage, and often will if they or a spouse gets coverage from another source. However,
1) If you do decline coverage, while you won't have to pay the employee premium, you won't otherwise be paid any more--i.e. the company doesn't have to give you a salary bump because they are not paying the employer portion of your coverage.
2) If there is an agreement in place requiring you to take or pay for insurance, that agreement would be honored; so, for example, a union or collective bargaining agreement may provide that all covered employees get and contribute to health insurance.
3) Changes in coverage can only be made at hiring; when certain specified life events (e.g. marriage, birth of a child, etc.) occur; or at "open enrollment" time.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.