Do you work for a hospital, medical group or medical center?

If so, as an employed physician, it’s likely you have disability insurance. It’s also likely that your coverage is provided as part of your group benefits package.

And while this may be a valuable benefit for most working physicians, we find that many of our members may not be aware that the disability insurance provided by their employer can have certain limitations.

The face of medicine is changing. What used to be a male-dominated field is undergoing a historic shift. According to initial enrollment data, at medical schools across Texas women are expected to comprise the majority of the graduating class of 2021.

Whether you are a new physician or one of the many women who paved the way leading to this moment, you can be proud of the accomplishment.

If you are a physician who is employed by a medical center or other practice, you probably have life insurance as an employee benefit. But does your current policy offer enough coverage to provide the right financial insurance protection for your family? And as some employers cut costs, can you be sure that your benefit will remain? Will it be reduced or eliminated at some point in the future?

When you chose to become a physician, you accepted tremendous responsibility. In many ways, you allowed yourself to become accountable for others’ lives, while at times putting your own health and safety at risk. Though there is an inherent risk in your profession - particularly now due to the Coronavirus - serious illness or injury could happen to any person in their day-to-day life.

As a female physician you’ve worked incredibly hard to be where you are today. Whether you own a thriving practice, or work in a large medical center or hospital, you’ve put in the hours, jumped the hurdles, met the challenges – in short, you’ve paid your dues. So why shouldn’t you be able to get more affordable rates for disability insurance?

As a physician, you have worked hard to achieve much in your life. As you plan for your future, you think of investment strategies and savings plans. If something should happen to you, financial protection for your loved ones is of paramount importance.

One of the best ways to offer immediate financial protection is to obtain a term life insurance policy, whereas many savings plans and investment strategies require time to build value. Once you are approved for a term life insurance policy, your amount of coverage is in place, and immediately helps to provide protection. Term life insurance provides financial protection for your family when they need it the most.

Rock climbers have confidence that their safety equipment will catch them if they fall; otherwise they would never take the risk of climbing. But they don’t secure their anchors, knots and carabiners once, then ignore them for the duration of their climb. To be safe, they check their safety equipment periodically; both as their position changes, and as time passes.

The long hours of study, the grueling night shifts, the heavy burden of student loans. As a female physician it’s obvious that you have paid your dues to get where you are today. And it goes without saying that you have worked just as hard as your male counterparts to achieve your goals.

So if you were told that your rates would be higher for long term disability insurance than those paid by male physicians – for the same level of coverage – you might be somewhat surprised and more than a little disappointed.