Disability insurance

[Laurel123]

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I think that I saw a thread about disability last month, but I can't find it now. And now I am looking to buy disability insurance. Which companies do you guys use for disability and what is a fair monthly premium for anesthesia and what are some things that I should look for in a policy?

 

[militarymd]

My individual policy is with Principal

Group policy is with Guardian.

< 500 per month for long term....90 day elimination....own occ...

200 per month for retirement DI...own occ

300 per month for short term...immediate payment...own occ.

 

[UTSouthwestern]

Question Mil,

If you become disabled, will both policies kick into full effect, or will the group policy try to "supplement" your individual policy but cap your benefits? I have heard of this happening in some circumstances especially with newer docs applying for DI.

 

[militarymd]

Question Mil,

If you become disabled, will both policies kick into full effect, or will the group policy try to "supplement" your individual policy but cap your benefits? I have heard of this happening in some circumstances especially with newer docs applying for DI.

I had an Individual policy in place prior to obtaining a group policy,......Individual policies, in general, pay benefits at rate that is independent of what ever other policies that you have.....that is why the rates are higher, and the benefits lower.

Group policies are variable....you just have to read the fine print of your group policy.....My group policy pays in ADDITION to my individual policy...so I'm golden should I become permanently disabiled for some reason...

Assuming my insurance compaines don't go belly up during my life time.

 

[ketamine]

I think that I saw a thread about disability last month, but I can't find it now. And now I am looking to buy disability insurance. Which companies do you guys use for disability and what is a fair monthly premium for anesthesia and what are some things that I should look for in a policy?

I have long term disability, it is about 3000 per year for own occupation with no exclusion for dangerous hobbies. I often wonder if it is money well spent.

Virtually every time I have heard about someone who tried to collect on their disability insurance when they were injured of legitimately disabled they had to hire a lawyer and sue the insurance company to get the money they were owed. It seems that whenever an insurance company is faced with writing a large check they fist deny it, then get their adjustors and legal department to look for ways to avoid paying. Suing the Insurance Company will take two or three years without getting a dime and you may loose.

On top of your disability insurance you need a work on getting enough saving to last two or three years until the insurance company feels like paying.

A family friend, a surgeon was injured in an auto accident spent 3 month in the hospital and is unable to stand for long due to a significant back injury. He is unable to preform surgery and applied for his own occupation disability insurance but the insurance company has refused to pay for over two years and he has had to file a lawsuit to the collect the money.

Where I am currently working a physician who developed sever Parkinson disease in his late forties had to sue the disability insurance company to get the money they owed him.

 

[militarymd]

Ket,

You must live in a different country then the US of A....In your country....everyone gets screwed.

You, your friends, your relatives....You should come to the US of A

 

[Pilot Doc]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=305332

Make sure you were using the advanced search function. (Click on search in the menu above and then advanced search) The google search function is worthless.

 

[ketamine]

Ket,

You must live in a different country then the US of A....In your country....everyone gets screwed.

You, your friends, your relatives....You should come to the US of A

Agreed to reconsider approximately 200,000 denied disability claims

Mil 200,000 claims denied and that is in the good old U.S.A.

I am not fortunate enough to live in the same Norman Rockwell Utopia in the rural Southeast where everything in perfect and everybody so honest that nobody ever has to consult a lawyer.

I have seen this several times that when faced with a large payout Insurance companies don’t just write a check as your disability insurance salesman promised but they deny the claim and force you to fight to get the money you are owed. This lawsuit is not unique but representative of the actual policy of most insurance companies.


From;
http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/case/first_unum


UnumProvident Denied Disability Claims
In recent settlements, UnumProvident has agreed to reconsider approximately 200,000 denied disability claims. Under investigation and pressure from the Department of Labor (DOL), UnumProvident’s family of companies must offer to reassess claims denied or closed since January 1, 2000 for reasons other than settlement, death, or reaching benefit maximums. They must also allow for reassessment, upon request, of claims similarly denied or closed between January 1, 1997 and December 31, 1999. The company will continue to accept and reevaluate these claims, whether or not the claimant is still disabled, until December 31, 2006.

If you have made a claim under a long-term disability policy provided by or administered by:


First UnumProvident Corp.

Unum Life Insurance Company of America

Paul Revere Life Insurance Company

Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company or

Provident Life & Accident Insurance Company

and have had your claim denied, or if your claim was granted and then later terminated, you may be eligible for substantial additional benefits from these companies.

UnumProvident and its subsidiaries offer individual and group insurance programs such as long-term disability income protection, short-term disability income protection, life insurance, long term care insurance, and voluntary critical illness insurance. UnumProvident insures more than 25 million people worldwide.

UnumProvident declare they have paid $4.2 billion in disability benefits in 2004 and reserve $25 billion for potential claims. Disability income protection insurance provides financial benefits to employees when they are unable to work due to a disability caused by a covered illness or injury, regardless of whether or not that illness or injury is work-related.

 

[ketamine]

Which companies do you guys use for disability and what is a fair monthly premium for anesthesia and what are some things that I should look for in a policy?

States challenge insurers that deny disability claims

"The general public doesn't have a clue what's going on. They're out buying policies that are just about worthless," he said.

"Sick and injured Americans often have little recourse when an insurance company denies their disability benefits."


from;
http://www.newsobserver.com/104/story/420933.html



"The regulators said Unum-Provident relied on its in-house doctors to find reasons to deny claims when it should have used independent doctors; read reports by independent doctors narrowly or incorrectly in searching for a reason to turn down a claim; failed to consider a policyholders' overall health in assessing a disability; and placed too much of the burden on a policyholder to prove a disability existed."

from;
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/2700769.shtml

 

[doctordi]

I think that I saw a thread about disability last month, but I can't find it now. And now I am looking to buy disability insurance. Which companies do you guys use for disability and what is a fair monthly premium for anesthesia and what are some things that I should look for in a policy?

There are currently several companies who offer solid disability contracts. Guardian is currently writing the most comprehensive contract. Mass Mutual, Northwest Mutual, Standard of Oregon, and Met Life are all pretty closely tied for second.

Premium is based on individual health history, age, income and there are hundreds of ways to manipulate the numbers so it is hard for me to give you an accurate range without more information.

Some things you should look for in a policy

Own-Occupation coverage- This is a little tricky because companies differ their wording when it comes to this. Some companies are offering specialty specific own occ coverage until age 65. This means that if you cannot perform anasthesiology but can practice any other specialty of medicine or work in an unrelated field you will collect your full benefit as well as any other income. Some companies limit this to a five year period or specify that if you are at work in another occupation that your benefit will not be paid. This is probably the most important aspect of a contract and it should be looked at closely.

Non cancellable-guaranteed renewable- means the company can never change your benefits or cancel the coverage and your rates can never increase.

Future Increase Option- The amount of coverage you qualify for is based upon your current income. Companies are currently writing residents 3500-4000 in monthly benefit. A future increase option allows you the guarantee of purchasing coverage in the future without proving health you only have to prove income.

Residual Disability- A partial disability rider that allows you to collect a portion of your benefit in relation to the percentage you are unable to work.

Cost of living adjustment rider- This is an inflationary rider that allows your monthly benefit to increase with inflation.

Lifetime benefits are currently available from a few companies and are nice if you can get them. Most companies pay benefits to age 65/67/or age 70.

I hope this is helpful and feel free to contact me with any questions or if I may be of some help.
Travis

 

[shamrockmd]

I have been reading the posts for the past few months and am finally going to put my two sense in on the conversation. I started shopping around for disability insurance a few months ago and like many of you i had no idea where to turn. I started doing my research and then sat down with a disability specialist from an insurance company and asked to see third party info on disability insurance.

I think that we can all agree on two things....

1) We want the best possible coverage from an excellent company
2) We want to pay a fair price and not get ripped off

After compleating my research I found out that there are alot of facts that some of these "leading insurance companies" (Guardian, Mass Mutual, and Principal) are leaving out when it comes to explaining the contract. Did you know that Guardian took over a 100 million dollar loss last year on their disability department. I know i didn't....but I do now. Did you know the ratio of Principal claims that were paid out last year vs the number of claims that were submitted....again I did not know...but I know now. Did you know that when shopping for DI I compared the prices for the exact same products and found out that the above 3 companies were almost 40 percent higher in cost than the company I went with. I was shocked at these results.

The bottom line is that 10 years ago there were a very large number of insurance companies that offered DI. Today the number of companies is cut by almost 2/3. The reason for this is because they priced the product way below what they should have and hoped that there were not going to be to many claims. They were wrong. These "top companies' are now taking losses of there own and are having a hard time paying out claims without going into the red. It will be only a matter of time before they sell off their product like so many other companies already have. Before long there will be a few companies that have inherited other companies bad apples and will be forced to do one of two things. Deny claims or raise monthly premiums through the roof.

The company I went with has an outstanding reputation for paying claims. Interesting fact....when 9/11 happened this company was the first to pay out claims to its policy holders. The rest of the insurance companies (Guardian, Mass Mutual, and Principal included) refused to pay claims because they viewed the terrorist attacts as an act of war and said in acts of war the death bennifit will not be paid out. This company paid out its death claims in 4 days WITHOUT A DEATH CERTIFICATE. They told the spouses that if their loved ones returned home all they ask is that they send the check back to the insurance company. I don't know about you but this does not sound like a company that is after their own bottom line. They are looking out for their clients best intrests. To me...this sounds like a company that i want my to insure my greatest asset...my ability to earn income.

I could easily tell you what insurance company this is but I do not want to start up debates. If you are serious about learning more i will answer any questions you have over email. I am not trying to stir up the pot but I think this is a very important subject to all of us and I feel everyone should have the facts so that they can make an informed decision.

 

[militarymd]

Which company did the disability specialist work for?

 

[Sugar72]

Which company did the disability specialist work for?

don't you mean which company does that poster work for?

 

[shamrockmd]

I am sorry I posted my opinion on here. I really thought that it might help people. Obviously there are a select few that do not want to be proven wrong. If there is anyone out there that wants to SERIOUSLY talk about this feel free to contact me.

 

[militarymd]

No, I'm serious...did your guy work for any particular company?

My guy is independent and sells contracts for multiple companies...including ALL of the companies that you have named.

PM me your benefit level and elimination period....and is it own occ up to 65?