Why Do Residents and Fellows Need Disability Insurance?
Long Term Disability Insurance is essential to any physician’s financial safety and security because your career income is by far your greatest asset. The process of becoming a doctor is rewarding in time but is an ultimate investment. You will train for years on a limited salary and many will struggle under the weight of student loans. The financial rewards of putting in this time outweigh the few years of medical school, residency and even fellowship. This is only assuming you’re capable of working.
If you develop an unexpected medical condition, whether it’s a sickness or injury, that prevents you from working, your obligations won’t just disappear but your income will. You still need to pay for student loans, mortgage, support for the family and normal lifestyle expenses. Medical professionals are at a unique risk for this situation, especially those who specialize in procedures and interventional duties. This is why Disability Insurance is extremely important to be fully protected without depleting your savings account.
Disability Insurance available for Students, Residents and Fellows
The Top 5 insurance carriers have special underwriting programs that allow residents and fellows to obtain a monthly benefit ranging from $5,000 during training, to $6,500 or $7,500 in their graduating year. You can secure coverage during training to lock in your health, age, state, etc. Although $5,000 monthly benefit may not be enough when you are making 5x your training income, obtaining a plan now will allow you to use a future increase rider to increase the benefit amount as an attending in the future, without any medical underwriting! At the time of increase you will just need to prove income and other long-term disability coverage you hold.
Call 973-771-9100 or request a disability insurance quote today to review the options available to you. At DrDisabilityQuotes.com, we have leveraged our decades worth of relationships with select carriers to delivery 10 to 30% Discounts for Residents & Fellows. Note you must submit your application to secure discounting prior to the 90th day after the last day of finishing your training. For example, if you finish residency on June 30th, you can still secure discounting if you submit an application by September 30th.
This is the best time to obtain long term disability insurance, while you are still healthy and can get maximum discounting available for each company.
Riders & Language to Search For
True Own Occupation
Cost of Living Adjustment Rider (COLA)
Future Increase Option Rider
Residual Disability Benefit Rider
Non-Cancelable & Guaranteed Renewable
After we send you quotes from the Top 5 insurance carriers, we will consult you on the fine detail, help you understand the differences between all the companies and answer any questions.
FAQS
1. I’m completely healthy now, why not wait until I’m an attending to secure a plan?
If you are healthy, this is the right time to secure a plan to lock in your health. As an attending physician, you will not be able to get the same discounting, your age change would result in price increases and, most importantly, you may not be insurable due to medical history.
2. I want to secure a plan but it’s too expensive on a resident/fellow salary, what can I do?
If you are asking yourself this question, we are more than happy to consult with you and help you customize the plans to best fit your needs, and budget.
3. Will getting my own individual coverage affect my group disability insurance?
No, getting individual coverage will not affect any group disability insurance you have. Since you are a resident or fellow, expect to lose the group long term disability insurance when you complete training. If you need to collect claims during training, you can collect on both individual and group plans.
4. How does the application process work?
For residents and fellows, there will be no lab testing and proof of income required. All you need to do is electronically sign an application and complete a phone interview where you answer medical questions. The process for attendings are a bit more complicated as attending physicians need to complete lab testing and provide tax documentation showing income.