How many of you have life insurance?

[ichor]

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I know lots of people in medical school have families. If I were one day in medical school and had a family, the mountain of debt would surely scare me into paying for it.

But if in med school I didn't have a family and I died in a freak accident, I guess the debt would die with me though.

 

[tdram]

I have it. You should get it too. It's a smart idea to get it while you're young and healthy.

 

[DermViser]

I have it. You should get it too. It's a smart idea to get it while you're young and healthy.

I agree. Medical school and onwards ages you dramatically.

 

[sazerac]

Federal student loans automatically come with both death and disability benefits. If you don't have federal loans then yes you should ensure you also have these protections.

If your family is depending on your future income, that is also a good reason to get additional death and disability insurance above and beyond the loans.

If nobody else depends on your future income stream (taking into account that your debt likely vanishes when you die), then life insurance is a waste of $$$.

 

[tdram]

If you envision needing life insurance in the future, it is better to get it when you are healthy because the premiums are lower. If you wait until you get older then end up getting diagnosed with something, your premiums will undoubdedtly be higher.

 

[NickNaylor]

Don't have a policy now, but I almost certainly will get one once I start residency. Just makes sense... the monthly premiums for relatively huge benefits are cheaper than my weekly coffee budget.

 

[deleted480308]

you can get 250k of term (don't get whole, it's a bad investement) for 20-30/month. Even if you don't have a family yet, go and get $20k somewhere and make your parents the beneficiaries so they can bury you if something happens

 

[fab4fan]

If you envision needing life insurance in the future, it is better to get it when you are healthy because the premiums are lower. If you wait until you get older then end up getting diagnosed with something, your premiums will undoubdedtly be higher.

When I was working, I had a policy for 100K through the hospital. I was going to try to increase it, but was denied because I had..........asthma. Fortunately, the policy continued even after I stopped working, so if something happens to me, my parents will have some money after paying for my cremation.

 

[hmockingbird]

We got life insurance through school... it was a separate form from the student loan stuff and was optional, so I don't think it was the benefits from the loans. (I paid for it because my parents said it was a good rate, and I figured with med school debt, why not...)

 

[MD Financial Services Scott]

When I was working, I had a policy for 100K through the hospital. I was going to try to increase it, but was denied because I had..........asthma. Fortunately, the policy continued even after I stopped working, so if something happens to me, my parents will have some money after paying for my cremation.

You should re-check that, I have never heard of anyone getting denied for Asthma, not sure who you went through to get coverage but there are a of ton of access points to get that taken care of in more favorable way.

 

[MD Financial Services Scott]

you can get 250k of term (don't get whole, it's a bad investment) for 20-30/month. Even if you don't have a family yet, go and get $20k somewhere and make your parents the beneficiaries so they can bury you if something happens

Most of the time for healthy people 35 and under the rates for every 1 million are about $25 per month for 10 year rate lock, $30 for a 15 year rate lock, and $35 for a 20 year rate lock.....coverage is just typically darn cheap!

 

[fab4fan]

You should re-check that, I have never heard of anyone getting denied for Asthma, not sure who you went through to get coverage but there are a of ton of access points to get that taken care of in more favorable way.

Yes, I did indeed check it. It was through my employer. Even though I am no longer working, I still have the policy, it's just worth 65K instead of 100K.

 

[fancymylotus]

Got a policy when I started working.

 

[bc65]

You only need life insurance if there are people who will suffer financially by your death. If you have a spouse and / or children now, or if you expect to get married and have children, then it's probably worthwhile to lock in a policy now. Most young physicians with dependents should have TERM ( only term ) policies for 2 or 3 million. You can ladder the policies, so that you have one 10 year policy for 1 million, and a 20 year policy for 2 million ( or perhaps a 1 million 10 year, plus a 1 million 20 year policy plus a 1 million 30 year ). You spouse should be insured as well, because if a lower-paid or non-working spouse dies, the surviving spouse will probably cut back on work or need to hire nannies.

NEVER buy whole life insurance, or any of the variants on whole life ( Universal life, indexed whole life, variable whole life, etc ).

You should also consider a good disability policy: individual policy, specialty specific, from a good company.

 

[dorothyntoto]

Once you are a medical student you can get a 50k plan for $17/yr.

 

[fab4fan]

You should also consider a good disability policy: individual policy, specialty specific, from a good company.

A thousand times this ^. I know I never expected to be permanently disabled before 50.

 

[bc65]

A thousand times this ^. I know I never expected to be permanently disabled before 50

Sorry to hear that.

I badgered a younger friend of mine to get a disability policy as a resident, and to get the maximum he could qualify for. Two years out of residency, he became totally disabled. His policy pays him his full salary in after-tax equivalent, and he has inflation protection besides. His policy is specialty-specific, and while he can't work in his procedure-heavy specialty, he is still working part time as a physician in another field, and still collects in full on his policy.