Why When You Buy Disability Insurance Matters (Buying Early Isn't Just About Price)
- Jan 28
- 7 min read
When physicians talk about disability insurance, the conversation usually starts with cost questions such as, “How much cheaper is it if I buy it now?” and “What kind of resident discount do I get?” These are fair questions, but they miss a critical point. The biggest importance of buying long-term disability insurance early in your career isn’t price. It’s qualifying for the best potential policy. The independent insurance brokers we partner with have been working with physicians across many different training levels and specialties for over a decade, and one thing has become increasingly clear: medical underwriting is getting tougher, and waiting often permanently limits your options. Below, we discuss the importance of having disability insurance, and why physicians shouldn’t wait when securing a policy.
The information for this article has been derived from original material contributed by Moment Insurance, one of our partners who helps physicians shop for disability insurance to find the best policy to help protect their financial future.
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Why is disability insurance important for doctors, and when should they buy it?
Disability insurance is one of the most important protections doctors can have in place for their income and future earning potential. Disability insurance helps protect your future self against financial catastrophe and can help you stay on track for your financial goals should you unfortunately have to pivot your career (temporarily or permanently) due to disability.
It's important to get disability insurance as early as possible, ideally as soon as you start residency. When you buy disability insurance will affect not only the cost you pay for it it, but also if you'll qualify, how much you'll qualify for, and what limitations may be placed on your policy.
The importance of getting disability insurance early isn’t about age–it’s about insurability
Disability insurance protects your future earning ability, not your current health status or how careful you are.
Physicians often assume:
“I’m young and healthy, so I’ll deal with this later.”
“Once residency is over, life will calm down.”
“If something comes up, I’ll just apply then.”
"I can't afford it now - even if it's more expensive later I'll have saved money in between."
The problem is that underwriting doesn’t care how minor or temporary something feels to you. It only cares what’s documented in your medical record.
Once something exists on paper, or in your records, you can’t undo it.
Where can I get a disability insurance policy?
If you don’t have a disability insurance policy in place, getting one now is better than waiting any longer. If you need help shopping policies and comparing options, the following independent disability insurance brokers can help:
Moment Insurance: Complete your quote inquiry information in less than five minutes and easily schedule an appointment to speak with a dedicated, experienced disability insurance expert who will walk you through the process from start to finish and help you compare different options. Many in the group have worked with their experts previously, and had a great experience! Contact them here.
Pattern: This convenient option will allow you to enter your information and immediately begin generating quotes from the major disability companies, as well as schedule a meeting with the Pattern team to discuss the options and figure out which plan is best for you. Many in the group have had a great experience with this process. Reach out here.
PolicyGenius: This is not a physician specific company, but well known in the insurance space. They may be a helpful resource if you are looking for another place for quotes. Make sure that you're comparing apples to apples in terms of true own occupation insurance, as not all fields emphasize the need for this equally. Contact them here.
Why underwriting is easier earlier in your career
Younger physicians are statistically healthier. This isn’t just a stereotype. It’s backed up by data and documentation.
As age increases, so does the prevalence of:
Hypertension
Diabetes and prediabetes
Anxiety and depression
Back, neck, and joint conditions
Injuries
Even among physicians, who are generally healthier and more informed than the general population, the odds of having something documented increase every year. It’s estimated that about one in four workers will experience a disability at some point in their career. Odds for doctors can be better, but estimates are still around one in seven or even one in five for doctors specifically.
Underwriting is about what exists, not how well you manage it.
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The difference even between first and last year residents
One of the most striking patterns seen by the insurance brokers we partner with is how quickly underwriting outcomes change, even within residency. Let’s look at an example to highlight this.
Example case 1: PGY-1 vs. PGY-4
PGY-1 resident has:
No medical history
No prescriptions
No mental health treatment
Outcome:
Approved at full benefit
No exclusions
No exams or labs required
PGY-4 resident has:
The same specialty
The same career trajectory
Documented anxiety during residency
Brief SSRI use, now discontinued
Outcome:
Mental/nervous limitation rider excluding all mental health conditions
Looking at these two residents, there’s no difference in their clinical ability. Yet their medical records are different, which means their ability to get comprehensive coverage has changed.
This gap has widened over the last decade as carriers have become more conservative.
Underwriting gets stricter with age, even if you’re healthy
As physicians get older, carriers often introduce additional requirements such as:
Paramedical exams
Blood and urine labs
Blood pressure measurements
Younger applicants frequently avoid these steps entirely.
More requirements mean more chances for something borderline to appear—and once it does, it becomes part of your underwriting file.
“Normal aging” can create permanent exclusions
One of the hardest things for physicians to accept is how ordinary life events affect underwriting. Let’s use another example to highlight this.
Example case 2: early career attending vs 10 years later
Physician, aged 32, has:
A clean medical history
Occasional musculoskeletal soreness, no treatment
Outcome:
No exclusions
Optional riders approved
The same physician at age 42 now has:
Documented back pain treated conservatively
MRI showing mild degenerative changes
Outcome:
Spine exclusion added
Reduced future increase options
Higher premium
Notice this isn’t an injury. This is normal wear-and-tear showing up on imaging. But once it’s documented, it’s underwritten forever.
Underwriting has generally gotten harder for doctors
Compared to decades ago, disability underwriting today is:
More conservative
Less flexible
Faster to add exclusions
This is because of several factors, including:
Rising claim frequency
Longer claim durations
Significant growth in mental health and musculoskeletal claims
These changes have resulted in fewer “gray area” approvals and more permanent limitations or exclusions for doctors looking to obtain disability insurance coverage.
Why the cost of disability insurance matters less than you think
It’s true that premiums increase with age and that residents get discounts, but price is rarely the limiting factor or why it’s so important for doctors to get disability insurance early in their careers.
When looking at disability insurance, you do often pay more when securing a policy later but, more importantly:
You can’t remove exclusions later
You can’t undo a decline later
The real risk of waiting isn’t cost—it’s losing clean coverage entirely.
Guaranteed Standard Issue (GSI) disability coverage
If your residency or fellowship program offers a Guaranteed Standard Issue (GSI) disability policy, it deserves consideration. Here are a few important points about GSI coverage all physicians should know:
GSI policies require no medical underwriting
Acceptance is guaranteed if eligibility rules are followed
GSI is not a fallback after failed underwriting
Applying through medical underwriting first can permanently disqualify you from GSI eligibility
In some programs, GSI is:
The simplest option
The most predictable option
The strategically correct option—even for healthy residents
GSI coverage is not just for people with medical issues. It can help minimize underwriting risk altogether.
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We recommend talking with an independent insurance broker to evaluate all options to find the best fit for your specific case. An independent broker can not only shop policies across carriers, but they’re well versed in the underwriting process and how carriers handle exclusions and denials, so they can review your full medical history to help you determine what type of policy to apply for.
Conclusion
Disability insurance isn’t about predicting illness or injury. It’s about recognizing that insurability is a window that quietly closes. The earlier you evaluate your options:
The more likely you qualify cleanly
The more flexibility you preserve
The fewer permanent compromises you make
Waiting doesn’t usually end in disaster, but it very often ends in less coverage than you could have had. That’s a cost most physicians don’t see until it’s too late.
Additional disability insurance resources for physicians
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