Disability Insurance: Time for a Review

Disability Insurance: Time for a Review
Ron Cohen, RHU, RR

No, it’s not just the economy most physicians are concerned with, nor the current balance in their pension plans. It’s more about the future, not only theirs, but medicine in general. Those docs who have paid off their homes and were fortunate enough to put away enough money for retirement, now become the elder statesman and teachers of the young.
Have a conversation with one and you might be surprised to hear them say;
“Make sure you have enough disability insurance before you do anything else!”
They understand what can happen and after all, most of the medical profession is indeed, based upon patients who are ailing. So, who should know more about what can happen as a result of a sickness or an accident? Exactly…. “Doctor, heal thyself!”
The reality of life is rather simple. You can’t live everyday worrying about what will happen. The best we can do is to prepare for the unknown and that alone brings about peace of mind. Most of life is out of our control and our hands. So, we do the best we can. Simple enough. The old saying, “Bad things happen to good people” remains true, but even bad people fall victim to bad things. When it comes to being disabled we are all thrown into the pot. Odds are odds and I for the life of me cannot relate to them…so forget’em. They don’t matter. You will or you won’t be disabled and that’s it in a nutshell. The point is, DO YOU WANT TO GAMBLE EVERYTHING YOU WILL EARN and possibly everything you have or will ever have?
I said it before a 1000 times. Keep it simple. Disability insurance should be viewed as a policy which you own and control. The total premiums you will pay to an insurance company to age 65 will usually be less, than the monthly benefit you will receive for a 1 year claim! Simple enough. Let’s put that into prospective.
If you were disabled a week from now, what would your concerns be? The future of medicine or your family? The stock market or your monthly disability benefits?
Your mortgage payment or the government’s recovery program? Putting food on the table or the nightly news? That’s the real world of being disabled. I know, I have been disabled 3 times and in a heartbeat, the world get’s awfully small and all too real.
I would suggest it might be time for a review of your disability insurance. Peace of mind comes with preparation….the future however remains unknown.