If not, 100% of your income—if it's all from surgery—could be at risk. Even if you have a group disability plan, 40% of your income may be at risk, because most group plans cover only about 60% of a surgeon's earnings. Either way, you should realize that a disability—whether caused by illness, disease or injury—can happen to anyone...even to extremely careful surgeons!
Are you between the ages of 40 and 65?
If so, you're in the age group when your income is likely to be the highest. However, according to the latest JHA Disability Fact Book, sooner or later some 43% of those in your group will suffer a long-term disability. With odds like that, one of them might very well be you! As a surgeon, you know that it's difficult or impossible to guard against all the various causes of disability. And you may even know of other surgeons who were forced to downsize or close their practice because they became disabled. But if you're counting on a group disability plan to fully protect you against the financial consequences of disability, think again. The fact is...
The typical group plan for surgeons simply isn't good enough.
A group disability plan is usually better than no plan at all, at first. But unless you read all the fine print and understand exactly what it covers, what it doesn't cover, how long it provides coverage, the minimum and maximum amount of benefits, etc., a group plan may not give you much more than a false sense of security.
You may think your income is protected when it isn’t!
As noted above, most group plans for surgeons offered by associations or insurance companies provide benefits that replace only 60% of your lost income, and only if you're totally disabled. Even then, the benefit payments may end before your disability ends (if it ever does). What happens if you switch professional groups—will you be dropped from the plan? If you remain partially disabled and your benefits stop, will it put an end to your medical career and/or your current lifestyle?
The bottom line is this: When it comes to disability insurance, you’ll find a "one-size- fits-all" group plan can not meet your needs as well as an individual policy custom-designed for a surgeon. A custom-designed individual policy can be more affordable than you may think—with the assistance of eDisability...at no extra cost!
eDisability specializes in individual disability insurance, but is not biased in favor of any particular insurance carrier.
That's why our agents and advisors are able to provide you with the most helpful advice and assistance in selecting the policies and options—from top-rated companies— that are best suited to your needs.
Because there are so many variables to consider when selecting disability protection—your age, occupation, health conditions, income sources, benefit amount, etc.—selecting the right type and amount of coverage is far more difficult and time-consuming than selecting most other types of insurance.
We have the experience, people and state-of-the-art software that makes everything much faster and far easier for you than doing it the old fashioned way (which can take many weeks). You can take advantage of these resources and still get the best price. That’s right. The premiums are no higher than if you went directly through the carriers! Find out for yourself now—without any obligation. Let us know exactly what kind of disability protection you'd like, and we'll custom-design an individual policy that's just right for you...and for your budget.
