Finding the Right Policy

• Medical economics recommends you utilize a specialty broker. This is a professional that specializes in the Physician market for Disability policies. This is a professional who represents virtually all the disability carriers in the United States. He or She works for you and not the insurance company. The insurance company is the vehicle used to obtain what you need and then at the best price for said quality. This would include only superior rated insurance companies as rated by third party rating companies.

• The inclusion of these two terms means that your policy can’t be cancelled for any reason, even if your health deteriorates. Neither can the premium be raised nor the policy contract provisions be changed.



• If a policy is merely Guaranteed Renewable but does not include Non-cancelable, your premiums can be increased at any time with no limit.

• This type of coverage is best described as “Catastrophic” and is not meant to represent your main protection. It generally does not protect you adequately in “Your specialty.” If you have the ability to perform any kind of work, you are usually excluded from receiving payment.



• Group plans commonly contain a myriad of loopholes and your benefits are reduced by Social Security payments. These plans often don’t cover partial disability and the insurance can be changed or canceled at any time.



• You can not take the coverage with you if you leave your current employer. You may not be able to purchase new coverage if your health has changed. ( Even a back problem) would not be covered.

• Individual Disability insurance is the most difficult type of insurance coverage to obtain. The reason is because you may be in what you consider excellent health, but something as simple as a back problem or knee problem could cause these areas to be excluded from being covered. If you were comparing this to purchasing life insurance, a back problem or knee problem would have no bearing or significance in obtaining life insurance, but it does for disability insurance.

• If you are going to be employed by a larger medical practice that provides Group (LTD) disability insurance, purchase your own personal individual disability insurance first. This means before your first day of employment or the date any group insurance would become effective. This is because of the rules insurance carriers maintain. Individual insurance carriers will reduce the amount of insurance you can purchase based on the amount of group coverage you already have in force. On the other hand, group LTD plans do not reduce the amount of group coverage you can purchase based on the amount of Individual Disability you already carry. Thus, to maximize your total monthly benefit amount, purchase as much Individual disability as you can before you start with your new employer that provides group LTD coverage.

• Premiums for Individual policies for females are 30 % to 50 % greater than males. While rates for females are less than males for Life insurance, the opposite is true for disability insurance. If you can get 1 or 2 of your co-workers to purchase even a minimum amount of coverage at the same time, companies allow unisex rates and discounts that give you the same rate as a male. The minimum premium and number of applicants to qualify for unisex rates varies by company. Check with us to see what works best for you. Note: the other insured can be a secretary. It does not need to be a physician.

• In most cases, association plans are group plans. (see group plans)