We recently received a call from a business client, informing us that one of their employees had been diagnosed with cancer and would be out of work for a long period of time.  Fortunately, this client had group disability coverage, so the employee will not face a complete loss of income, along with all the other obstacles he or she will have to overcome.  The loss of income due to illness or accident is one of the most overlooked risks we encounter.
 
One in five Americans will experience a long term disability during their working years.  Disabilities that persist for more than 90 days, tend to last for years.  Every 30 seconds, someone files for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious medical problem.  Despite these scary statistics, over 85% of those employed have no loss of income or disability coverage.
 
Many employers do not provide disability coverage, despite the fact that this is an inexpensive employee benefit.  Few individuals are receptive to the idea of purchasing individual coverage.  For some reason, the impact of a loss of income has not sunk in our collective consciousness, and we avoid both the discussion and the solution.
 
The fact of the matter is that nearly any employer, small or large can obtain group coverage on a very reasonable basis.  In the case of our client mentioned above, the employee will receive 60% of pre-disability income for as long as the disability persists. A fifty year old, earning $50,000/year could receive an overall benefit of $450,000 if they were disabled until age 65. 
 
Social security does provide a limited disability benefit, it is not sufficient and is very difficult to qualify for. Workers compensation does not cover disabilities that are not work related, the vast majority of disabilities are not work related. 
 
Anyone who works for an employer should suggest that the company investigate disability coverage for employees.  For the business owner, this represents an opportunity to provide a very meaningful benefit for your employees at an extremely low cost.