There are several things that you need to consider when buying disability insurance. Like all other insurance, this one is also full of conditions and pre-conditions especially with regard to your risk of getting disabled. As such, the cost of your policy will depend on how well you have understood your risks as perceived by your underwriter. As a physician you would generally fall in the higher income category which also means that you have certain lifestyle expenses. Do you seek to cover even these expenses in the income-replacement insurance that you intend to buy? Another important factor is your gender and age. If you happen to be an aging female, chances are that you will pay more for your insurance against disability.
Always go for long term coverage
Although your insurance provider offers both short term and long term coverage against disability, you must always choose a long term doctors disability insurance policy. A short term policy will provide coverage for a maximum of 6 months.
A long term policy on the other hand, will provide a minimum coverage of two years while the maximum coverage could be up to the time you retire. Yes, there is a significant cost difference but then how are you going to pay your bills in case of disability for say, a couple of years?
Choose an individual policy
If you are employed in a hospital or nursing home where you have compulsory group disability insurance services, you need to know that it would not provide enough coverage. Such insurance should ideally meet your basic expenses and be enough to pay your bills.
Therefore, you must opt for an individual physicians disability insurance which will be costlier but the compensation will be quite good. Just make sure to mention your specific job function that can get affected in the event of disability and a reasonable compensation amount.
Total income replacement is very expensive
When you purchase a healthcare professionals disability insurance it is essentially to make sure that you do not stop earning a regular income even when you are disabled. Such income cannot replace your regular income as a physician but will be around 60% of your net income.
That is enough to take care of your bills including your education loan repayments. However, if you want the compensation of your healthcare professionals insurance to match your income before you suffer a disability, it is going to be very expensive.
Look for advice from a reliable expert
There is an endless list of things to consider when you purchase a physicians disability insurance and it is not possible for a non-expert to know and remember all of these. There are riders that will help you customize the policy to fit your exact needs.
Realistically, it is not possible for someone not from the industry to know exactly how to package the policy optimally. That is why you need to find a reliable disability insurance broker who can guide you in selecting and customizing the optimum policy that will meet your needs.
