Musicians and Insurance

[SPIKE]

I was talking to Brent Best of the Drams one time, well, more like complaining, about my office job (which I gladly gave back and resumed my position on the good ol' factory belt) He simply replied "It's a dream of mine to have a regular job with health insurance and benefits."

Sometimes I take what I have for granted.

[sturgeongeneral]

in my conversations with working muscians(of which i am not one), having insurance coverage for the various negative events that life might bestow is a rarity. at the very least one would think a basic health ins. policy is a necessity, however, musicians, being self-employed independant contractors are stuck with the full premium without the benefit of an employer contribution. maybe jay is fortunate and has coverage thru a spouse, assuming that spouse is employed and that employer can provide extended coverage available to the spouse plus family. this does not even begin to consider the more esoteric coverages such as life, long term health, and disability. purchasing one of these policies can be difficult, as underwriters often demand extensive documentation of one's well-being. in general, only the healthiest need apply and, no surprise, pre-existing conditions are not covered.

there are differing forms of disability coverage, ranging from total disability, or "own-occupation" coverage, to "gainful occupation" coverage (being able to work but suffering limitations). The buyer can, in the words of disabilityincome.com, expect to pay between 1-3% of your annual income in disability premium alone. beware of the language in the policy. suppose a musician suffers a hand injury, however, can continue to compose music and sing. the argument can be made that a gainful employment can be sustained with a backing band even if the musician can no longer perform his/her instrument. hence, no coverage based upon those factual circumstances depending on the language in the policy. what about a catastrophic injury such as paralysis? the argument can be made one can still perform his art albeit with some limitations and restrictions. see, for example, vic chestnutt.

insurance is becoming(has become) a scarce benefit available to fewer and fewer. methinks the mid level musician is not part of that elite group. we see through a glass darkly.

[Jay (not that one)]

You are right that musicians probably SHOULD carry disability insurance. However, like the public in general, most of them probably do not.

If I were in their shoes, I would try to purchase a policy that covered "own occupation", meaning it would pay if they couldn't perform their current occupation. Some jobs cover "any occupation", meaning sorry Jay, you broke your hand but you can still telemarket...good luck.

[saratoga jay]

isn't really good music the best medicine?

[the Watcher]

I'm talking disability coverage moreso than run of the mill health care.

Is it ridiculous to wonder if an artist at the Jay Farrar level carries some sort of coverage to protect against injury to his hands? Let's face it, some torn ligaments and broken bones in his hands would be devastating to his livelihood, whereas my white collar hands, if similarly damaged, wouldn't prevent me from earning a living. On the one hand it seems ridiculous, like rumors about movie stars having coverage on their physical assets, but on the other hand...it seems like a legitimate question, no?

I'm guessing that if the dude's married, and if wife works, he's probably covered under her company plan for general health care...but I'm curious as to the lost income part of the equation in the aforementioned scenario.

Anyone know anything about this stuff? Musicians' coverage, that is?