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Review of the Ameritas Disability Plan for Physicians
What is Own Specialty Disability Insurance
Own Specialty Disability Insurance is a type of disability plan designed specifically for physicians. It protects you from any sickness or injury that may prevent you from working in your medical specialty by providing you with a tax-free income replacement. A True Own Specialty Disability policy will continue to pay your full tax-free benefit even if you work in another occupation, regardless of the income you may earn working in another occupation.
Does Ameritas offer True Own Specialty Disability Insurance to Physicians?
Ameritas Optional Riders
Adding riders to your disability plan enhance your coverage by providing you with added protection to protect you during your time of need. Here is a list of the typical riders offered through an Ameritas disability policy:
- Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA)
- Enhanced Partial Rider (Residual)
- Catastrophic Disability Rider (CAT)
- Student Loan Rider
What’s Unique About the Ameritas Policy?
- Ameritas Offers a Good Health Benefit Ameritas is the only carrier with this feature. Under their Good Health Benefit, Ameritas will reduce your Elimination Period by 2 days for every year that you do not use your policy. If you start with a 90 day elimination period, and you haven’t used your policy in 10 years your waiting period is now only 70 days! This feature is free and available in most states.
- Ameritas offers a Non-Disabling Injury Benefit This is another Free feature included on most Ameritas disability plans. The Ameritas Non-Disabling Injury Benefit pays you up to $3,000 for any injury you sustain that does not disable you.
- Ameritas offers a True Guaranteed Future Increase Option Under their Future Increase rider, when eligible to increase your coverage, Ameritas guarantees that you will be increasing your benefit under the exact same policy features, definitions, and pricing schedule of the year in which you purchased your original contract. This is Important for younger physicians that tend to increase their benefits as their income increases. Having the peace of mind to know that all future increases are guaranteed to be under the same contract provisions of your original contract is an important feature.
Most Physicians can purchase an Ameritas plan at a discount Disability Insurance for physicians and dentists is expensive and purchasing e a True Own Specialty plan with a discount can save you thousands over the course of your career. Ameritas offers all physicians in residency/fellowship a 20% discount. As well as discounts for preferred occupation classes like Non-Interventional Radiologists, Family Medicine/Internal Medicine, and Pediatric physicians. Most attending physicians will also find that they may be eligible for up to 15% in savings through hospital or medical association affiliation discounts provided through Ameritas.
Conclusion
Ameritas is considered one of the “Big 7” carriers that offer physicians a True Own Specialty Disability policy. The other 6 carriers are MassMutual, Guardian, Mutual of Omaha, Ohio National, Principal and The Standard.
Ameritas offers a preferred definition of Total Disability through their Own Occupation Rider which allows a physicians or dentist to continue to collect their full disability benefit if they are disabled in their specialty even if they elect to work in another occupation.
Ameritas offers a wide variety of riders to enhance your coverage as well as the ability to qualify for discounts that may significantly offset the cost of your coverage throughout the life of your policy.
Ameritas is the only carrier that offers a Good Health and Non-Disabling Injury Benefit.
To conclude, If you are a physician or dentist and you purchase an Ameritas Disability policy along with adding their Own Occupation Rider then you have a good Own Specialty Disability Insurance policy.