Astute Physician

Young Physicians and Dentists who graduate from their respective residency and fellowship programs should feel a sense of relief but instead, are saddled with a tremendous amount of tuition debt. Even though many of these professionals will earn a very comfortable income, it really does not provide any form of security when a large portion of that income is allocated directly to paying down those loans. The numbers are staggering.

A study done by the Association of American Medical Colleges in 2008 indicated that the average medical student carries with them over $155,000.00 in student loan debt from tuition costs associated from medical school and related programs.

Many residents average an income between approx. $46,000.00 a year (PGY 1) to approx. $55,000.00 a year (PGY 3) which is to say the critical time to pay down student debt really only begins once a professional becomes a practicing physician or dentist and a salary increase occurs.

The ability to earn an income to pay down that debt is the most important fact to consider. What happens to a person that cannot earn that income because either a sickness or injury prevents them from practicing medicine? Will the bank decide to provide a bailout? Highly unlikely. This very simple concept sadly is overlooked by many young medical professionals unless they see it directly affect a friend or themselves.

The solution to this dilemma is simple – get your own income protection through purchasing a long term disability insurance policy. Dentists and Physicians need to have own-occupation policies that protect their training and should select policies that offer medical or dental specialty language protection. Some policies may even continue to pay you a benefit even if you still earn an income working in another medical or dental field.

With so many options available, try to find a financial advisor who specializes in selling disability insurance and understands what products provide the right fit for the selected individual. Protecting your income will be the most important decision any dentist or physician makes.

Thomas Lloyd is a financial advisor with the Financial Balance Group. He specializes in providing disability and life insurance benefits to medical professionals. He can be reached toll-free at 1-888-513-2300 ext. 318. His website is http://www.diquotes.com.