Did you know that military physicians have different guidelines when it comes to buying disability insurance? The guidelines can often be confusing which is where we can help.
This article will walk you through a quick overview of how this works and if you want a bird’s eye view, please visit our Military Physician resource page here.
Active Duty military physicians often have caps to how much they can purchase for disability insurance, especially if they are already receiving some form of disability benefits from the government. Additionally, the only carrier you can apply to if active duty already, is with MassMutual; but luckily they starting offering a 25% discount for Federal Employees last year. This can be for any Federal Employee, not just military physicians.
What if you are a resident or fellow and Active Duty? Your initial maximum benefit allowable will be $2,000 a month as a starting point, unless you meet the carrier’s military physician income guidelines that haven’t been formally published. So, how would you know how much more you potentially are allowed to have?
Variables That May Affect Your Original Policy at Approval:
- Are You Active Duty?
- Do You Have Any Upcoming Deployment Orders?
- Do You Have An Anticipated Discharge Date?
- Do You Plan To Go Over 20 Years In Service?
If you answer the questions above, in addition to supplying proof of income, we can reach out to our dedicated underwriting team to find out how much more you are allowed to have. If you are curious yourself, you can request a quote here now.
So, let’s assume you qualify for the maximum of $2,000 of monthly benefits, based upon the criteria above, as well as your income not supporting any higher coverage. If you have any other income coming from training, you may just be out of luck completely.
Case Study on our Active Duty Navy Physician
Recently, our team helped an Active Duty Navy physician who also did some diving instruction a few hours per month. Because of the diving, he was compensated an extra $500/month bonus which was then was accounted for, in the financial part of the underwriting process. Because of that income, the carrier considered it to be another profession so they declined coverage as it didn’t meet the guidelines that they proposed for this active duty physician.
Please note: We highly recommend you apply early in general, to allow for the higher benefits and discounted rates.
If you start with less than the $5,000 resident/fellow amount, your future increase option could also be reduced depending on the type of contract you go with. So to give yourself more flexibility for the future, applying and locking in coverage ASAP is a good idea. This will also help you avoid any medical exclusions that could also arise if you want to secure your insurance without any modifications. This will be important, especially as physicians are offered any locums / moonlighting opportunities.
What if you are a resident or fellow and not Active Duty?
You do have a few carrier options that will allow for you to lock in $5,000 of monthly benefits instead of the $2,000 a month that MassMutual allows for; just like the traditional limits other MDs and DOs have at discounted rates. Quick reference to typical resident limits is here.
To read more about Own Occupation definitions, among other types of contracts, please read our Physician Guide here.
If you want to talk through a specific situation you are facing, please use our online scheduler so that we can discuss what is best for you.
Where This Fits in Your Plan
You don’t need to make a decision today, but you do need to understand your options.
The strongest disability insurance decisions are often made before limitations, diagnoses, or career changes narrow what is available.
Clarity creates confidence. And confidence helps physicians make stronger decisions about protecting the income they’ve worked years to build.
If you’re reviewing your disability insurance, preparing for private practice, or evaluating your income protection strategy, understanding the details now can create more flexibility later.
To build a stronger financial foundation and better understand how career, money, and risk work together, download the FREE Medical Professionals Blueprint here.
If you would like to schedule a disability insurance strategy session, click here.
If you would like to request physician disability insurance quotes, click here.
About MD Disability Quotes
MD Disability Quotes was founded by disability insurance specialists Scott Nelson-Archer and Amber Stitt to help physicians, dentists, and high-income medical professionals build stronger income protection strategies through education-first planning.
With decades of combined experience in physician disability insurance, underwriting strategy, and income protection planning, Scott and Amber work with medical professionals nationwide to design disability insurance strategies that are portable, specialty-specific, and aligned with the long-term realities of a medical career.
Amber Stitt is also the host of The Responsible Resident, a podcast built to help residents, fellows, and early-career physicians better understand disability insurance, underwriting, and the financial decisions that shape long-term career flexibility.
Their work centers on helping physicians make informed decisions early—before health changes, career transitions, or underwriting limitations affect future options.
You can email us: info@mddisabilityquotes.com
Call 713-966-3932 (9 AM-5 PM Central)
Text 281-770-8080 at your convenience.