Disability Doesn’t Take a Holiday
The festivities of the holiday season are well upon us. Like the rest of your fellow Americans, you are now under the constant bombardment of twinkling lights, plastic garland, nostalgic movies on every television channel, corny Christmas tunes escaping elevator speakers, the daily onslaught of Amazon boxes on your doorstep and of course, the building pressure and chaos of visiting your local shopping mall. Ah, the beautiful commercialism and consumerism that is the holidays. But it can be an enjoyable time of year nonetheless…if it doesn’t make you crazy first.
Yet, through all the “ugly sweater” parties and all the wonderful time spent with family and friends, the reminder of your day job should always be present, and the prospects of selling insurance and meeting the financial protection needs of your clients should fully cease. Even though we Americans take this time of year to celebrate and step away from the office for a day or two, it’s important to remember that disability doesn’t take a holiday.
In many aspects, disablement is a natural phenomenon. It is a regular part of life, of many lives in this country. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over 27% of U.S. residents suffer some form of disability every year, and almost 18% of Americans are undergoing severe, long-term disablement. The statistics for working adults are slightly less alarming, but nonetheless worthy of sincere consideration. According to the Council for Disability Awareness, more than 25% of today’s 20-year-olds can expect to be out of work for at least a year due to a disabling event during their entire career. Furthermore, almost 6% of working Americans suffer short-term disablement every year.
Contrary to popular opinion, disabilities don’t usually come from freak accidents or unlucky work-related injuries. Most clinical short and long-term disablements are non-occupational and arise from illnesses or degenerative disorders like cancer, heart disease, diabetes and muscular and skeletal degeneration.
The research, collected data and published statistics, no matter the relevant and trustworthy sources, all point to the serious, widespread problem of disability in the U.S. Over 773,000 Americans filed for bankruptcy this year with the primary underlying causes being medical bills, lost employment and illness or injury. Employer-provided worker’s compensation and governmental benefits hardly provide substantial monetary relief for most occurrences of disablement. The practical solution is individual and/or group disability insurance at levels sufficient to provide for oneself and one’s family in time of unforeseen and unexpected loss of the ability to work and earn an income.
The power and freedom of living in this country is our given ability to make a suitable living and receive a paycheck. Disability is a reality and disability insurance is the answer. So during this time of reflection and merry making, remember that disability doesn’t take a holiday.