The guidelines schedule sets the base child support number — then real life adds its line items: the health insurance premium, the daycare bill that rivals a mortgage, the therapy copays. Florida law handles each with specific rules, and because these add-ons often move the final number more than any other input, they deserve more attention than they usually get. From The Law Office of John Vernon Moore, P.A. in Melbourne.
Health Insurance: Ordered, Counted, Credited
Every Florida support order must address the children’s health insurance, ordering coverage when it is available at reasonable cost — presumptively, coverage not exceeding 5% of the providing parent’s gross income. The mechanics matter: the child-only portion of the premium — not the parent’s own coverage — is added to the basic obligation and allocated between the parents by income share, with the paying parent credited for premiums they actually pay. The recurring mistakes we correct: counting the family premium instead of isolating the children’s cost (an employer HR letter breaking out the child premium is worth real money), forgetting the credit entirely, and orders that never assign who covers the kids after a job change. Dental and vision follow the same logic; document all three.
Childcare: The 75% Rule
Work-related childcare — daycare, after-school care, summer camp that enables employment or job search or education leading to employment — is added to the obligation, but not dollar-for-dollar: § 61.30(7) adds 75% of actual childcare costs, a statutory reduction reflecting the federal childcare tax credit. The costs must be actual and employment-related — the enrichment program neither parent needs for work is a different conversation — and as children age out of daycare, the order should anticipate the step-down, because support built on $1,200 monthly daycare does not self-correct when kindergarten starts. Receipts and provider statements are the currency here; estimated or aspirational childcare numbers collapse under affidavit scrutiny.
Uncovered Medical: The Reimbursement Wars
Copays, deductibles, orthodontia, glasses, therapy — noncovered medical expenses are allocated between parents, ordinarily by percentage income share, and they generate more post-judgment friction than any other money issue. The pattern: one parent pays, sends a photo of a receipt, and waits; the other disputes, delays, or ghosts; small sums accumulate into resentment and then into enforcement motions. The cure is procedural drafting: orders that set submission deadlines (receipts within 30 days), payment deadlines (reimbursement within 30 more), a defined channel (the co-parenting app), and consequences for noncompliance. Elective expenses undertaken unilaterally — the non-emergency orthodontia one parent authorized alone — belong in the medical decision conversation before they become reimbursement claims.
Getting the Whole Worksheet Right
These add-ons flow through the guidelines worksheet, which means each one is a lever: the parent paying insurance wants the premium counted; the parent paying daycare wants it included at the right figure; both want the other’s numbers verified. Practical diligence that pays: obtain the actual premium breakdown from HR, the actual provider invoices, and the Explanation of Benefits trail for recurring medical costs — then check the math, because worksheet errors in add-on allocation are among the most common (and most correctable) support mistakes. Run scenarios with our guidelines guide and calculator before mediation, not after.
Frequently Asked Questions
Whose insurance must cover the children?
Whichever the order designates — usually the parent with reasonable-cost access through employment. The premium cost is then shared through the calculation regardless of whose paycheck it leaves.
Does 100% of daycare get added to support?
No — 75% by statute, allocated by income share. Verify the worksheet applied the reduction; a surprising number do not.
My ex refuses to reimburse medical copays. What now?
Document the submissions, then enforce — courts award the arrears plus, with a proper record, fees. And amend the order to add deadlines if it lacks them; process prevents the next round.
Do braces count as a shared expense?
Orthodontia is a classic noncovered medical expense shared by income percentage — but as elective care, agree (or get an order) before treatment starts, not after the bill arrives.
The Add-Ons Are Where the Money Moves
With over 89 years of combined experience, our team gets the worksheet right — every line of it. Call (321) 529-7777 or contact us online for a free 30-minute consultation.