Story at-a-glance
- Missing key riders can cost you—especially the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) that protects against inflation.
- COLA keeps your benefits growing—flat-rate or CPI-linked options ensure your payout keeps pace with rising costs.
- Inflation hits hard over time—especially for long-term claims and younger doctors with decades ahead.
- Disability benefits cover everyday expenses—not just medical bills, so erosion affects your whole lifestyle.
- Add a COLA rider early—it’s a small cost for long-term security if you ever need to rely on your coverage.
Ever go to the drive-thru, head off with your order, then—once you’re about six miles from the restaurant—reach into the bag and find something is missing? You can have the same experience with your disability income protection if you don’t choose your disability insurance carefully.
A doctors disability insurance policy can be constructed with many different clauses that enhance your coverage. One that can be easily overlooked until it is sorely missed is the cost of living adjustment, or COLA. This benefit serves as inflation protection. Although it adds to the cost of your disability policy, it prevents the value of your coverage from eroding over time due to increases in the cost of living.
There are two basic types of COLA riders available: flat rate, which increases your payout benefit by a certain percentage each year; or CPI-linked, which adjusts your payout benefit based on the movement of the Consumer Price Index. Young medical professionals definitely need a cost of living rider since they will need their benefits for a long time, and who knows what will happen with inflation. In general, your cost for the rider is fixed and doesn’t fluctuate based on changes in the inflation rate.
How Inflation Can Erode Your Benefits
Physician disability insurance benefits are not like healthcare benefits. They are not restricted in their use to just medical needs. You can use disability insurance income to pay personal bills, such as mortgages, food and credit cards, as well as applying the benefits payments to medical bills if needed. Although inflation has been fairly low over the past several years, some sectors have seen spikes. Those include gasoline, food, medical expenses and college tuition. Talk about the basics!
To avoid falling behind while you are trying to recover from a serious injury or illness, make sure you plan ahead by opting for a cost of living rider on your physicians disability income protection policy. To find out about more benefits available to you from disability insurance for medical professionals, contact one of our experts at https://doctordisability.com/contact-us/ or call at 866-899-7318
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