This year, Disability Insurance Awareness Month is more important than ever. As the United States emerges from the global pandemic, many Americans look to the future with less confidence about what to expect. We all saw the financial impacts of the pandemic and how unanticipated events can affect one's plans and financial security. While no one has a crystal ball to predict the future, you can give your clients the tools to protect themselves in the face of the unexpected.

Disability Insurance Awareness Month promotes the importance of income protection and the ways that disability insurance can help. There are a few types of disability insurance. Short term disability insurance is usually offered through the workplace and pays benefits when someone is unable to work for several weeks or months due to a disability. Long term disability insurance (LTD) pays benefits if that person can't work for a longer period of time. But what if the LTD insurance doesn't cover enough of your client's income, which can be common for high earners? Individual disability insurance (IDI) provides an extra layer of insurance to cover longer absences from work due to a disability. And if an employer doesn't provide LTD insurance at all, IDI can take its place for the employee. In either scenario, IDI can help bridge the income protection gap.

How IDI works

IDI is a safety net that can provide peace of mind during uncertain times. Individual disability insurance — sometimes called income protection insurance — pays monthly benefits to replace lost income if the policyowner is unable to work for an extended period of time due to a sickness or injury. It can provide a comprehensive and flexible range of benefits.