Philadelphia Medicine Fall 2020 - 30

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DISABILITY INCOME INSURANCE:

Do your due diligence
By Kevin P. Nicholson

nlike life insurance, which is a relatively straightforward
application process, disability income insurance can be
more complex, and more difficult to qualify. Nuances in
how companies evaluate pre-existing conditions and other limitations
can complicate the process of matching a resident to an insurance
carrier. Only through extensive due diligence can a resident arrive
at a successful outcome.

How can you, the resident, fellow or new attending, ensure that
you have performed your due diligence?
First, it's imperative to find an adviser who has a keen knowledge
of the disability income insurance marketplace, and who will take the
time to ask you about your medical history at the onset. Knowing
that health history will help your adviser properly anticipate and
address any potential issues as they arise.

make the difference between policy coverage and costs.
Financial advisers knowledgeable in the disability income insurance arena will also remind their clients to speak to their doctors
to make sure their medical records are accurate. Residents should
double check the write-up they made against that of their doctor's,
to make sure their records are consistent with yours. For example,
while you know that you stopped taking medication for chronic
back pain three years ago, your doctor may not have updated your
patient records yet to reflect that.
As a real-life example, in 2012, a client started taking medication
for depression following the death of her mother. She stopped a
year later, and applied for disability income insurance a couple of
years after that. She received an offer from an insurance company,
but it contained an exclusion for depression. Confused, my client
asked how this was possible, considering she stopped taking the
medication in 2013.

Experienced financial advisors who work closely with medical
professionals should be expected to ask health care professionals to
My client's doctor had labeled her depression medication as
come to their first meeting with a detailed write-up of their medical
history. Chances are, some of the past issues they've included will "2012-." It turns out, this woman's doctor had never labeled her
not affect their ability to attain coverage, but knowing the whole depression as "resolved," thus the underwriter assumed she was still
picture upfront can increase the chances of finding their best policy taking the medication. Armed with this knowledge, we explained
match. Were you on depression medication at one point in your life? the discrepancy to the underwriter and were able to secure the policy
Do you smoke? Have muscle pain? Anxiety? These are all important without the exclusion.
questions when shopping for your best match. Your answers can often
30 Philadelphia Medicine : Fall 2020

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Philadelphia Medicine Fall 2020

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