Boomer business owners: Please get health insurance and disability insurance!
I just heard of a young professional who has been in practice for only a few years. He was in a terrible accident, which will mean hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills, not to say the loss of his ability to practice.
If you are considering leaving your job to go into a small business, please check out health insurance and disability insurance. If you can’t afford these payments, you need to find something else to sacrifice to get them. If you are not going into business, be sure you have health coverage, and don’t depend on your employer (you know what happened to GM retiree health coverage).
You may be able to set up an insurance plan for your small business, but get help doing this, as the IRS has rules about deductibility of such plans.
6 Comments
[...] Original post by Small Business Boomers [...]
It is critical to get health and disability insurance when self employed. The first year you are in business there may not be a great DI plan available though. But any plan is better than no plan and a good broker can get you started and upgrade as your business grows.
Thanks for the comment, Rob. Finding a good insurance person should be at the top of the list for startups, along with banker, attorney and CPA.
Good point! Disability coverage is the most overlooked form of insurance, but also one of the most important policies a business owner can have.
Be sure to ask your insurance professional about a Business Overhead Expense (BOE) policy too. It’s very affordable coverage that pays to keep your business open while recovering from an injury or illness.
Thanks, jonmoss. I haven’t heard of a BOE policy, so I will definitely look into it.
Whereas a disability policy replaces your personal income in the event of a disability, a BOE policy will pay the ongoing business expenses (electric, rent, phones, Internet, etc…) while the business owner is disabled. Benefit period can vary (12 or 24 months).
In the event of long-term disability the business owner will be able to offer the business up for sale at a better price rather than being forced to have a fire-sale and settle for 10 cents on the dollar.
This coverage can be sold in conjuction with an LTD policy or on a standalone basis. It is very affordable too.