Medical students’ top concerns about disability insurance
If you’re a medical student who has been encouraged to get disability insurance, you might be skeptical about whether you really need it. After all, disability insurance is designed to replace part of a person’s income if he or she is unable to work. But medical students typically don’t earn an income, so where is the need? The information below will help you decide whether this type of insurance would be beneficial to you.
“I’m a student. Do I need disability insurance?”
As a medical student, you may not have an income to replace, but you still have monthly expenses to pay. Disability insurance can relieve some of the financial burden if you are unable to attend school due to illness or disability, especially if you’re dependent on a student line of credit. In fact, some financial institutions will request repayment of your student line of credit if you take a medical leave from school.
The money can help with living expenses and remove some of the financial stress while you concentrate on getting better.
More importantly, you can’t be sure that when you’re working and need more coverage, you will be as healthy as you are today. Most disability insurance policies—like those available from your provincial or territorial medical association (PTMA)—come with features that lock in your good health from today to guarantee that you will be able to buy more insurance in the future, no matter what your health is like then.
“I don’t have time for a medical check and onerous application process.”
Medical students are pre-approved for disability insurance, so there are no medical tests. Most PTMAs have streamlined their application process, making it easy and quick for you to obtain disability insurance. When you apply, there are no health questions to answer, although you may be contacted for further details when your application is being processed.
“Isn’t disability insurance expensive?”
Disability insurance through PTMAs is very affordable. They have negotiated special medical student offers for disability insurance coverage, with premiums that are discounted significantly—as much as 100% depending on the PTMA and year. Contact your PTMA to out what coverage is offered, and how to apply.