Comments on: Disablity Insurance for a Doctor: A Necessary Expense

By: Dr. T

Dr. T — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 07:37:55 +0000

thanks for the feedback,

I did sign up for an “own occupation” policy that is paid for with my post tax earnings to provide the flexibility I will need if I change jobs multiple times throughout my career.

I also have a future increase rider that I will exercise once I am out of residency and earning a full salary.

I am not sure if i would be able to purchase coverage greater than 100% of my income.
If I do sign with a group that has a disability policy I guess I will see if I can opt out and keep the payments as part of my salary.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 10:55:57 +0000

if you pay for your policy, the payouts will be tax free. if your employer provides it, you are on the hook. most employers cannot afford to provide all their physicians the best disability plans. make sure you figure out what you need based on your expenses. as a resident, make sure you get the rider guarantee for what you anticipate needing. terms will change in the future, as you noted.
investigate what your total protection can be. in some cases, work provided + personal provided > 100% income, and some insurances do not allow this and will reduce their payment by some formula.

By: Dr. T

Dr. T — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 04:09:51 +0000

I am currently covered as a resident with a bare bones policy and once I get out most groups and hospitals have a standard group policy.

I will likely change jobs multiple times over my career and I wanted a policy that I would have no matter where or with whom I worked.

I really feel that this is one form of insurance that I didn’t want to take any chances with. Currently only 2 companies write the coverage that I wanted(own occupation) and there is a good chance that they will stop as well in the future.

The only reason I started my policy before the end of my residency was the birth of our child.

By: CanadianSaver

CanadianSaver — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 23:19:50 +0000

This is something I got in 2005 and while it is expensive, I have no regrets paying it. I am single with no other income coming in if I get hurt, so I wanted to be covered. My emergency fund would only last so long!!

I would have thought that you’d be covered through the hospital you work at though??