Dentists often find it difficult to obtain sufficient amounts of disability insurance. As with any high-income profession, finding the right carrier who offers high limit plans can be a challenge. One particular area where the insureds’ needs are not always met is disability insurance for dentists.
Why Disability Insurance For Dentists?
There are many different types of dentist disability insurance. From protecting your personal income, to covering all financial risks should you be unable to continue practicing dentistry, there is really a policy for everyone.
The policy (or policies) that you select is a personal choice and there is no such thing as “one-size-fits-all”. We provide expert, unbiased advice in helping you shop for the best disability insurance policy for your needs.
Having a plan, should you be unable to work due to sickness or injury, is critical to almost all professions. What makes disability insurance for dentists so important can be covered by three factors: high income, high overhead, highly specialized.
High Income Dentists
The average net income for a dentist in private practice was $179,960 for a general practitioner and $320,460 for a specialist (in 2015 according to this study). Since most dentists are also business owners, they are often limited to association plans for their disability insurance coverage. While any type of coverage is preferable to not having it, a high earning dentist may find that a group plan does not fully cover all of their needs.
High Overhead
Staff, equipment, rent, and even student loans are all large expenses that a dental practice incurs on an ongoing basis. Having protection in place should you be unable to practice can ensure that your business is still able to function in your absence. This allows for either a recovery period (returning to a fully functioning office without bills piling up or clients leaving en masse) or time to sell the business (an operational office without debt is surely more valuable than one in shambles). Not all disabilities are permanent but being unable to run your dental practice due to sickness or injury can make for very few clients to come back to.
Dentists Who Are Highly Specialized
The American Dental Association offers a great plan from which many dentists could benefit. Disability insurance for dentists shouldn’t be too hard to find, unless you are considered a high-income professional.As mentioned before, specialists earn an average of 320k. Most financial advisors agree that your disability insurance should cover 60-65% of your income.
As mentioned before, dental specialists earn an average of 320k. Most financial advisors agree that your disability insurance should cover 60-65% of your income. Using 320k and a 65% income replacement, the average specialist would need over 17k per month in disability insurance benefits. The ADA plan will only cover up to 180k in total benefits, leaving the average earning specialist with an over 25k shortfall in benefits.
This doesn’t even take into consideration the population of owner dentists and specialists who make much more than 320k per year. For this group, having additional disability insurance is crucial to protect their robust incomes.
What Type of Disability Insurance for Dentists Is Best?
Having a policy is better than not having one.
Having a policy that you own is better than having one that you don’t.
Having a policy that covers “your occupation” is better than one that covers “any occupation”
Having a policy (or multiple policies) that cover 65% of your income is better than one that covers less.
For many dentists, having an ADA sponsored group plan may be sufficient. However, if you’re a high earning general practitioner or a specialist, then you’ll likely need to look into supplemental coverage or a personal disability insurance policy.
These plans can cover:
Primary coverage
Excess/Supplemental coverage
Special risk coverage
Domestic coverage
International coverage
Take the Case of..
Dr. T, who chose to cut back on his work hours in order to have more family time. This resulted in his not being able to exercise his future increase option on his two traditional disability policies because his income had not increased sufficiently.
Now the children are off to college and Dr. T has returned to full time practice. He needs more disability insurance, especially during the children’s college years.
Since he missed out on using his future increase option, he needs more disability insurance. We help professionals like Dr. T secure more disability coverage to protect their families.
There is no such thing as the “best” plan. What’s important is that you work with an agency that understands what dentists need, that is independent (to allow for multiple quotes from the major disability insurance companies), and that is an expert in the disability insurance market. High Income Protection is an agency that specializes in disability insurance for dentists. We help you shop for the best disability insurance policy for your needs and objectives.
Summary
If you’re a dentist and need high limit disability insurance, we can help. If your existing policies no longer address your needs, we can do a confidential, complimentary review to determine the best course of action. Our agency assists a variety of medical professionals in securing disability insurance. Disability insurance for dentists is not an exception.
Contact us today to get started. You can complete the quote form on the left or simply call us at 888-636-2310. We’re looking forward to working with you.