Q&A: Sometimes two disability policies are better than one

Q: I am a fourth-year orthopedic surgery resident with two years of training left. I understand the importance of securing an individual disability policy while still in training, but I recently was told that with my income potential, I should consider securing two policies. Why is that?

A: Securing two individual disability policies while still in training is a unique and new strategy. The main reason to secure a policy during your training years is to protect your future insurability by adding a Future Purchase Option rider. That rider is limited based on the starting policy benefit and/or the maximum amount the company issues. For high-income specialties, the only way to protect the maximum amount of a Future Purchase Option is to do so through two policies.