Couple Files for Divorce so They Can Qualify for Medical Insurance

TEMPE, AZ -- An Arizona woman divorces her husband to get medical care for her daughter.

It's been dubbed a medical divorce and untold numbers of Americans are doing it.

Mostly working families who can't afford their medical bills and don't qualify for government health care.

Talented and talkative 17-year-old Kyla McDonald is now succeeding despite years of struggle with an auto-immune disease, autism and bi-polar disorder.

"I used to be a pretty violent child," admits Kyla.

Medical and mental health bills mounted and Kyla's parents lost their house.

But the family still earned too much to qualify for government health care.

"The behavioral health professionals who worked with us advised us we should abandon her at the airport so CPS would take her into custody. We refused to do that we were not going to abandon her," said mom, Cinder McDonald.

Instead Kyla's mom and her stepdad divorced in 2005.

Newly "single" mom Cinder's income was finally low enough to get state funded behavioral health services.

"It was kind of sad. They were making a big sacrifice for me," said Kyla.

Health care pundits say such radical choices are still pretty rare.

"Is it gaming the system? Yes, but from my perspective what's unethical is to have a healthcare system where people are forced to make this choice," said Roger Hughes of St. Lukes Health Initiatives.

The McDonald's tough choice became a turning point for their daughter's treatment.

And even though the marriage was dissolved, the love remains.

"We are definitely a family and we always will be," said Cinder McDonald.

Kyla's stepdad is still an active part of her life.

In fact he plans to remarry her mom, next year when Kyla's 18 and will qualify for free government healthcare on her own.

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