Medical Residents – Here is Why You Need Disability Insurance Now

As a medical resident, you are aware that certain disabilities can have life altering consequences, especially if safeguards were not put into place before the disability occurred. It is no secret that residency is often a trying time, including lack of money, long hours, little sleep and an accumulation of student loans. Contemplating your financial future can feel overwhelming when you are just trying to get through the long list of daily responsibilities as a medical resident. Even if purchasing disability insurance is not currently at the top of your priority list, take a quick look at a few reasons why it is a good idea to protect yourself early on.

4 Reasons to Invest in Income Protection During Residency

1. Your career is not only physically demanding, but it also requires you to take higher on-the-job risks than many other professions.
   

2. As a medical resident, your most valuable financial asset is your future earnings ability, which can be at risk if you become disabled. Student loans and monthly living expenses do not go away if you become ill or are injured.
   

3. Physicians have higher rates of mental and nervous conditions and musculoskeletal disorders than those in other professions. According to the Council for Disability Awareness, a U.S. Social Security Administration Fact Sheet from February 2013 stated that more than 25 percent of today’s 20-year-olds will be disabled before they retire, and that each person has approximately a one in three chance of losing future income due to injury or illness. Armed with this information, you can see it is wise to plan ahead for any unexpected circumstances.
   

4. Disability insurance is priced in proportion to your income. In addition, the older you get, the more expensive this type of insurance becomes, as your likelihood to use it increases. As a medical resident, now is the time to buy. Not only may you get a lower rate because of your age, you may be less likely to have health conditions that could result in policy exclusions of coverage.

Now that you know some of the advantages to buying disability insurance as a medical resident, let’s take a closer look at some aspects to look for when purchasing a plan.

5 Aspects to Look For in a Disability Plan

1. Future Increase Options: Be sure to look for a disability insurance policy that can be increased at a future date without additional medical underwriting, as your income increases during your career.

2. Residual Disability Rider: This rider would allow you to receive partial monetary benefits if you have a 15 to 20 percent (depending on the insurance provider) loss of earnings or more as a result of not being able to work full-time or not being able to perform all of your job duties.

3. Non-Cancelable and Guaranteed Renewable: Securing a policy with these provisions ensures that the policy can't be canceled and the contract provisions can't be changed without your consent, and the premium can't be raised for the life of the policy as long as you continue to pay your premiums.

4. Own Occupation Definition of Disability: When working with your insurance advisor, ask about securing a policy that covers you in your medical specialty without restrictions. Simply put, this type of policy will cover you in whichever specialty you were in at the time of your disability.

5. COLA Rider: Also known as a Cost of Living Rider, this keeps your insurance benefits up with inflation, if you are claiming benefits for more than a year.
   

In addition to long-term disability insurance, you may want to look into high limit disability insurance plans as your income increases. With studies stating up to 20 percent of people having a period of disability between the ages of 25 and 65, the odds are too high to not insure your financial future. With lower monthly disability insurance premiums for medical residents, protect yourself today and know you have protection for  some of the financial hardship of an unforeseen injury or illness.