208-609-3511 daniel@bittickinsurance.com

Long-term disability insurance replaces a portion of your earned income — typically 50 to 70 percent of your pre-disability salary — if a medical condition prevents you from working for an extended period. It is one of the most overlooked personal coverages, even though a lengthy illness or injury is statistically more likely to derail your finances than a house fire. For Treasure Valley households where a single income supports a mortgage, a truck payment, and a family, losing that paycheck for a year or more is a real threat. Bittick shops disability policies across multiple carriers and helps you match the benefit period, elimination period, and payout level to what your actual budget requires.

What this coverage includes

Monthly income replacement while you're unable to work

When a qualifying disability keeps you off the job, your policy pays a monthly benefit — usually 50 to 70 percent of your pre-tax income — directly to you. You use those funds however you need: mortgage, groceries, utilities, medical bills. The benefit continues until you recover and return to work, until the policy's maximum benefit period ends, or until you reach retirement age, depending on how your policy is written.

Elimination period: the waiting period before benefits begin

Most long-term disability policies do not pay from day one. There is an elimination period — typically 60, 90, or 180 days — during which you must be continuously disabled before benefits kick in. A longer elimination period usually lowers your premium. If you have savings or a short-term disability policy to bridge that gap, a longer wait can be a smart trade-off. We walk through that math with you before you commit to a policy.

Benefit period options: fixed term or through retirement

Some policies pay benefits for a fixed period — five, ten, or twenty years — while others guarantee payments all the way to your retirement age, regardless of how long that takes. A five-year benefit may cost less, but if you become disabled at 40, five years of income replacement still leaves decades uncovered. The right benefit period depends on your age, your assets, and what you owe.

Your own policy versus coverage through your employer

Many employers offer group long-term disability coverage, sometimes at no cost to you. That is worth taking, but it is worth reading the details too. Employer-sponsored benefits are often capped at a lower payout level than you would choose on your own, and benefits paid from an employer-paid policy are typically taxable as ordinary income. A policy you purchase with after-tax dollars generally pays benefits tax-free. Holding both gives you layered coverage; holding only the employer plan may leave a gap.

Pairs well with

Short-Term Disability Insurance

Short-term disability covers the weeks or months immediately after an injury or illness, bridging the gap before long-term disability benefits begin. The two policies are designed to stack.

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Life Insurance

Long-term disability and life insurance address two sides of the same financial risk: disability replaces income while you are living; life insurance protects your family if you are not. Most financial plans include both.

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Health Insurance

A serious illness that triggers a disability claim also generates significant medical bills. Health insurance and disability insurance work together — one covers the treatment costs, the other replaces the lost income.

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Critical Illness Insurance

Critical illness policies pay a lump sum on diagnosis of specific conditions like heart attack, stroke, or cancer. Paired with long-term disability, the lump sum can cover immediate out-of-pocket costs while monthly disability benefits handle ongoing income replacement.

What this coverage protects against

Common risks and how this coverage addresses them. Tap any scenario to expand.

  • A back injury ends a finish carpenter's season — and then some.

    The risk

    A finish carpenter in Eagle tears two lumbar discs on a framing job in October. Surgery goes well, but the recovery timeline stretches past a year. He cannot lift, kneel, or stand for any sustained period. His tools sit in the garage and his invoices stop going out.

    How this coverage helps

    His long-term disability policy kicks in after the 90-day elimination period and replaces 60 percent of his average monthly income. The benefit continues until he can return to work, keeping his household current on the mortgage and his truck payment while he focuses on rehab.

  • A cancer diagnosis interrupts a steady Meridian salary.

    The risk

    A project manager at a Meridian tech firm is diagnosed with breast cancer at 44. Chemotherapy and radiation run eight months, and fatigue and side effects mean she cannot work a full schedule for most of that time. Her employer's short-term disability runs out after 90 days.

    How this coverage helps

    Her individual long-term disability policy, which she purchased separately from her employer's group plan, begins paying benefits at the 90-day mark. Because she paid premiums with after-tax dollars, the monthly benefit is not subject to income tax, giving her more usable income during treatment.

  • Self-employed and unprotected: a plumber with no employer backstop.

    The risk

    A self-employed plumber running a two-person shop in Nampa has no group benefits, no HR department, and no safety net if he cannot work. A wrist fracture that requires surgery and six months of limited-duty restrictions would eliminate his entire revenue stream.

    How this coverage helps

    An individual long-term disability policy sized to his net self-employment income gives him a monthly benefit during any qualifying disability. Bittick shops policies from multiple carriers to find one that treats self-employment income fairly during underwriting and pays a benefit that actually matches what he earns.

  • Employer coverage that turns out to be thinner than expected.

    The risk

    A Caldwell school administrator assumes his employer-paid group disability policy has him covered. When he reviews it before a planned surgery, he finds the benefit is capped at a fixed dollar amount set years ago, taxable, and limited to a two-year benefit period.

    How this coverage helps

    He supplements the group plan with an individual policy that fills the income gap, pays benefits tax-free, and extends coverage through his planned retirement age at 67. The combined benefit keeps his household whole if he cannot return to work after the procedure.

  • A long elimination period and no savings to bridge it.

    The risk

    A warehouse supervisor in Star chose a 180-day elimination period when she bought her disability policy to keep the premium affordable. She did not account for what six months without income would look like after her emergency fund ran out in month two.

    How this coverage helps

    Adding a short-term disability policy that pays from day 14 through day 180 fills the exact window her long-term policy does not cover. The two policies together cost less per month than shortening the elimination period on the long-term policy alone would have.

  • A neurological condition makes returning to the same job impossible.

    The risk

    A Boise electrician develops early-onset multiple sclerosis at 51. He can still manage light physical tasks but cannot safely do the climbing, crawling, and heavy-lift work his licensed trade requires. He is not fully disabled, but he cannot do his job.

    How this coverage helps

    His policy includes an own-occupation definition of disability, meaning benefits apply if he cannot perform the material duties of his specific occupation — not just any work. He receives partial benefits while he transitions to a supervisory role, protecting a meaningful share of his previous income.

Frequently asked questions

How much of my income does long-term disability insurance actually replace?
Most policies replace 50 to 70 percent of your pre-disability gross income. That ceiling exists because insurers want you to have a financial incentive to return to work when you are able. If your employer already provides some group coverage, an individual policy can layer on top to get you closer to your actual take-home pay.
What's the difference between long-term and short-term disability insurance?
Short-term disability typically covers the first weeks to months of a disabling condition, often up to one or two years. Long-term disability picks up where short-term ends and can pay benefits for five, ten, or twenty years, or all the way to retirement age. Most people who carry both use the short-term policy to cover the elimination period on their long-term policy.
Is the disability benefit I receive taxable income?
It depends on who paid the premiums. If your employer paid for a group policy with pre-tax dollars, the benefits you receive are generally taxable. If you purchase an individual policy with after-tax dollars, the benefits are typically tax-free. That tax difference can be meaningful, and it is one reason some people buy a separate policy even when employer coverage exists.
How long do I have to wait before benefits start?
That is your elimination period, and you choose it when you buy the policy. Common options are 60, 90, or 180 days of continuous disability before the first benefit payment. A longer elimination period lowers your premium. The right choice depends on how much you have in savings and whether you have a short-term disability policy to cover the gap.
Can I get long-term disability insurance if I'm self-employed in Idaho?
Yes. Individual disability policies are available to self-employed tradespeople, contractors, and business owners throughout the Treasure Valley. The underwriting process will look at your documented net income, so having clean tax returns or profit-and-loss records matters. Bittick works with carriers that are experienced in underwriting self-employment income and can help you find a policy that reflects what you actually earn.
Does Bittick offer long-term disability insurance in states other than Idaho?
Yes. Bittick is licensed to place personal insurance in CA, CO, ID, NV, OR, TX, VA, and WA. If you are outside Idaho, including clients in the San Antonio metro we serve from our Texas office, the same process applies: we shop multiple carriers and match the policy structure to your income, occupation, and coverage goals.

Let's look at your income protection options

Tell us about your situation and we'll compare disability policies from multiple carriers to find coverage that fits your income and your budget.

Don't like forms? Contact us at 208-609-3511 or email us.