17 Reasons Physicians Need Disability Insurance

Throughout your career as a physician, you’ll likely be solicited numerous financial products and services, some of which bring true value to your overall financial well-being, and some of which are simply unnecessary. Most financial professionals and physicians alike would agree that disability insurance is one financial product that should be included in nearly every physician’s financial plan during their wealth accumulation years.

For those who are not already aware, disability insurance is an insurance policy intended to replace a portion of your income if an injury or illness prevents you from practicing in your medical specialty. Some GME programs, hospitals, and medical groups will provide this as a group benefit, but many physicians will need and/or choose to carry a personal policy as well.

It’s easy to understand that income protection is important because your income is important. The larger your income, the larger its impact on your lifestyle and ability to achieve financial independence. This couldn’t be any truer for physicians considering the education, training, and level of expertise you have. If you haven’t already secured your income protection, here are 17 reasons you may want to.

CAUSES OF DISABILITY CLAIMS
	2012		2013
Claim Diagnosis Category	New	Existing	New	Existing
Musculoskeletal/Connective Tissue	28.7	30.8	28.6	28.7
Nervous System-Related	7.5	14.4	7.7	15.2
Cardiovascular / Circulatory	8.5	12.2	8.7	12.4
Cancer and Neoplasms	14.6	8.8	15.1	9.1
Injury and Poisoning	10.2	7.6	10.3	7.7
Mental Disorders	8.9	7.6	8.3	7.7
Respiratory System	2.1	2.9	2.3	3.0
Symptoms, Signs and Ill-defined	2.9	2.8	2.8	2.7
Infections and Parasitic Diseases	2.2	2.7	1.9	2.9
Digestive System	2.7	2.3	2.6	2.4
Genitourinary System	2.1	2.1	2.1	2.2
Endocrine, Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases and Immunity Disorders	1.3	2.1	1.3	2.2
Complications of Pregnancy and Childbirth	6.0	1.4	5.9	1.7
Skin and Subcutaneous Tissue	0.7	0.8	0.8	0.8
Congenital Anomalies	0.5	0.7	0.5	0.7
Blood and Blood-forming Organs	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.3
Other	0.9	0.5	0.9	0.3
Total	100%	100%	100%	100%

The Council for Disability Awareness, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on the risk and consequences of experiencing a disabling injury or illness, conducts an annual review of long term disability claims among the US working population. According to the “2014 CDA Long Term Disability Claims Survey” these are the 17 categories in which new and existing disability insurance claims fall.

Michael L. Relvas, CFP®, is the founder of MR Insurance Consultants and specializes in life and disability insurance for physicians nationwide. Michael can be reached at 800-817-4522 or MRelvas@mrinco.com.