Physician, Insure Thyself – Part 1: Disability Insurance

By Kyle Cyr posted 2 days ago

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With an ever-growing focus on the importance of self-care, we still often neglect taking care of our financial basics. Even if you don’t have anyone else depending on you, YOU depend on you. To be prepared for the future, you need the right insurance coverage. By Kyle Cyr, MD, FASA

We are mortal and susceptible to illness and injury. As physicians, we understand that irrefutable fact (well, irrefutable within the limits of medicine and technology as of 2026). Yet, as humans, we have a difficult time contemplating our own mortality and physical limits. No one wants to think about death and disability. But there’s no better time to prepare and plan for the future than today.

Why do you work and what are your financial goals? If you got in an accident tomorrow, what would happen? If you couldn’t work, could you still make payments on your student loans and credit cards? If you died, would your spouse be able to pay off the mortgage or would your family have to move? Did you have plans to help out with your kids’ college tuition, weddings, etc.?

That’s where long-term disability insurance (DI) and term life insurance come in. Both are key cornerstones to your financial stability. Both should be obtained as early as possible in one’s career. You will get cheaper rates that are sustained throughout the life of the policy if you get them while you’re younger and healthier. Moreover, there are often discounts on DI if you get it as a resident or fellow.

Perhaps I’ll come back to life insurance in a future Part 2 article, but due to space constraints, I’m only going to address long-term DI today. It’s worth giving brief mention that most people can avoid short-term disability insurance. That’s what your 3-6 month safety net is for, which you have… right?

Here are some things to watch out for and consider when looking for a DI policy:

Look for in a DI policy is that it is “true own-occupation” or “specialty-specific”. If you work as a surgeon and lose a thumb or an eye, you technically still might be able to do annual physicals or workers comp claims. Make sure the policy covers your specialty. Meaning, if you can’t work in your specific specialty, you will be covered. Do not settle for anything less than true own-occupation coverage.
Make sure the policy is “non-cancellable” and “guaranteed renewable”. Most are. It basically means that if you pay your premiums, they can’t cancel the policy.
Seriously consider “partial disability” coverage in the policy. If you have that and you can work a few hours a day, or a day a week, but not full time, it fills the gap.
Choose the right time for your policy to kick in. If your employer offers a free short-term DI policy, you can set the long-term policy to kick in after that. Otherwise, base it on your safety net size and risk tolerance. The longer you set out your timeframe, the cheaper your policy will be. Common options are 3-6 months from the time of injury/cessation of ability to work.
Research the DI policy options that can be attached to the policy (called “riders”). Common riders are cost of living adjustment, auto-benefit increase, optional coverage expansion to match salary increases. These riders should NOT change the base rate or requiring additional medical review (obviously you’ll have to pay more for increased coverage, but if you were locked in at a lower premium-to-coverage rate, you’ll keep that rate). Other rider examples include retirement contribution protection, student loan protection, mental health coverage, etc. You can look these up or discuss with an agent or broker.

Lastly, pick a company who has been around for a while. Your policy is only as good as the company holding it. If they go out of business, you have no coverage.

If you have an employer-sponsored plan or a “group plan”, I’d still consider getting your own portable personal policy. Consider that as you age, you may accumulate any number of medical issues (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, arthritis of various joints, obesity, OSA, etc.). Thus, if you leave that employer, getting coverage from scratch could be harder or more costly. Additionally, if your employer offers it, but you’re still the one paying for it in the sense that the monthly premium comes out of your paycheck (similar to how health insurance might), then even more reason you should think about canceling that and getting your own plan.

Kyle Cyr, MD, FASA, is Deputy Director for Surgery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

The ASA Committee on Young Physicians is pleased to present this monthly article series on personal finance. These articles are not written by hedge fund managers or real estate tycoons but by practicing physicians. Some have business degrees and some do not – but every contributor is an anesthesiologist who has some guidance to offer the rising generation of attending physicians. It is not the intention of the committee to offer definitive financial advice, but rather some pearls of wisdom to consider while developing a personal fiscal plan.

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