Disability insurance is an important tool to protect your income and the time and money you invested in your veterinary career. It pays out if you’re sick or injured and can’t work as a veterinarian. A good policy will replace your income for as long as you can’t work, even if you can never work again.
Even if you get short-term disability insurance through the clinic or practice where you work, it’s still a good idea to buy your own long-term policy. The best way to find affordable disability insurance coverage that fits your needs is by comparing quotes from multiple companies before deciding on a policy.
Why veterinarians need disability insurance
If you’re a veterinarian, it’s worth having disability insurance to protect your income (and your savings) in case you’re injured or sick and can’t work. Disability insurance means you and your family will still have money coming in and you can take time to recover without having to use your savings or find another job.
Long-term disability insurance can pay out for years or even decades if you’re never able to work as a veterinarian again. And benefits you get from a personal policy aren’t taxed like income, since the money you used to buy the policy was taxed as income already.
Disability insurance can cover most disabling conditions that might keep you from being able to practice as a veterinarian, either temporarily or permanently, including:
Anxiety and depression
Broken bones
Nerve damage
Pregnancy and childbirth
Cancer and other serious illnesses
Traumatic brain injuries
Your disability benefits work like regular income, so you can use them to pay for normal expenses like mortgage or rent payments, auto loans, and day-to-day expenses like groceries, transportation, and childcare.
When should you get disability insurance?
We recommend getting disability insurance when you’re still relatively young, as long as you can afford it, since the cost of coverage only goes up as you get older. You may be able to pay the same premiums for your entire veterinary career — as long as you keep the same coverage.
You may not even need to wait to graduate from veterinary school to get a policy. Some insurance companies will sell you a disability policy while you’re in school, to protect your future income.
Once you graduate and start earning more, you can increase your coverage amount to line up with your income.
What type of disability insurance do veterinarians need?
Having disability insurance is important, but you want to make sure to get the right kind of policy. We recommend a long-term, own-occupation policy if you’re a veterinarian, especially if you’re a high earner, have a family who relies on your income, or are still paying off debt.
Long-term disability insurance offers the best protection because it can pay benefits for decades, while short-term disability insurance policies have a maximum payment period of three months to a year at the most. Short-term disability insurance can be more useful in some cases, like if you need to take time off for pregnancy or childbirth, but you may also get short-term coverage as a work benefit.
Your policy’s “definition of disability” determines how, exactly, you’re eligible to receive benefits. An own-occupation policy pays benefits for as long as you can’t work as a veterinarian (up to your maximum benefit term), even if you can work in another job. Some other types of policies only pay benefits if you can’t work at all.
Read more about how long-term disability insurance works
What if you already get disability insurance through work?
You may already have disability insurance through the clinic, practice, or animal hospital where you work. Many employers offer disability insurance for free or at a discount, and you can opt-in to coverage when you start your job or during open enrollment.
It’s worth signing up for disability coverage through your employer if it’s offered, but make sure you know of the limits of this kind of policy. Most work-provided disability insurance is short-term and only pays out benefits for up to a year at the most. These plans may not fully replace your income, either, and any benefits you get are likely taxable.
Read more about group disability insurance
Are riders worth it for veterinarians?
There are a handful of disability insurance riders (meaning add-ons or features of your coverage) that are useful for veterinarians. Riders may be included as a part of your standard coverage or available to add for an additional cost.
Future increase option: Allows you to add more coverage in the future without going through the lengthy application process again.
Guaranteed renewable/non-cancelable: Your rates can’t go up and your coverage will remain active as long as you pay your premiums.
Own-occupation: You’re eligible for benefits if a disability prevents you from working as a veterinarian, even if you can work in another job.
Partial or residual disability: You still receive a partial benefit if your disability affects some of your work as a veterinarian.
Student loan rider: Helps you continue to make your student loan payments when you’re unable to work, may be worth having if you have outstanding debt.
How much does disability insurance cost for veterinarians?
Disability insurance usually costs 1% to 3% of your annual income. Using median income data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we found that veterinarians can expect to pay between $99 and $298 a month for disability insurance.
That said, what you pay may vary depending on your policy’s details and your health, medical history, age, and what type of veterinary work you do. If you work primarily with animals that could injure you, like livestock or exotic pets, you may pay higher premiums than someone who works with general domestic pets.
Best disability insurance companies for veterinarians
As a veterinarian, you should look for a disability insurance company that has experience working with high-income professionals. The best disability insurance company will offer the coverage you need (including riders) at an affordable price. Some of our top companies include:
BBB rating | A.M. Best rating | What we like about it … | |
|---|---|---|---|
A+ | A | Includes a survivor benefit for your beneficiary. | |
A+ | AA+ | Offers lifetime continuous benefits for total disabilities, even after the policy expires. | |
A | A++ | Offers a future insurability rider that's good until your 60th birthday. | |
A+ | A+ | Offers a lump-sum payment of $62,400 in addition to regular benefits if you're presumptively disabled. | |
A+ | A | Includes a family care benefit if you have to take time off to care for a sick loved one. |
How to get disability insurance
No matter what kind of veterinarian you are, you can follow these seven steps to get disability insurance:
