Disability Insurance and Protecting Your Paycheck | Bri Conn, CFP® & Scott Barnes, CFP®, TPCP®, CLTC

When you're Childfree, disability insurance is essential. Bri Conn, CFP® and Scott Barnes, CFP®, TPCP®, CLTC make the case that your paycheck is the engine behind the entire life you've designed, and protecting it isn't the same as guarding against some freak accident. More than one in four of today's 20-year-olds will become disabled before retirement, and about 90 percent of claims come from ordinary illnesses like cancer, heart conditions, and long COVID, not the dramatic scenarios people picture. The throughline is the one that runs through everything on this show: your income is your freedom, and protecting it on purpose is how you keep the life you built.In This Episode, You'll Learn:Why disability is far more common than people assume, with more than one in four of today's 20-year-olds becoming disabled before retirement and about 90 percent of claims coming from everyday illnesses rather than accidentsThe real difference between short-term and long-term disability coverage, and why a solo earner with no partner to fall back on should treat long-term coverage as non-negotiableHow the definition of disability in your policy changes everything, from the restrictive "any occupation" standard to the "own occupation" coverage that keeps paying even if you build a new careerHow occupational class, benefit caps, and riders like residual disability shape what you actually pay and what you actually collect, and why mental health claims are often limited to a set number of yearsThe tax rule that catches people off guard, why a benefit paid for by your employer is taxable while one you fund yourself arrives tax-free, and how that math should shape the coverage you chooseEpisode Hosts:Bri Conn, CFP® is a Childfree Wealth Specialist® at Childfree Wealth® and Customer Experience Manager at Childfree Trust®. She specializes in financial management, life design, and estate planning, with particular focus on LGBTQ+ individuals and couples, drawing on her own early financial challenges and recovery to fuel her work in personal finance education.Scott Barnes, CFP®, TPCP®, CLTC is an Associate Advisor at Childfree Wealth® and the go-to expert for long-term care strategies and tax planning questions.About Childfree Insights:Childfree Insights is the trusted education hub for people who are Childfree or permanently Childless. It provides guidance on finances, estate planning, relationships, and life decisions for adults without children. Home of Childfree Wealth® and Childfree Trust®, supporting long-term planning for people living without kids.Connect with Us:Ready to work on building better financial habits? Connect with our financial planning team at childfreewealth.com or learn more about estate planning at childfreetrust.com.Follow Childfree Life by Design on your favorite podcast platform and join the conversation on social media:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/childfreeinsightsFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChildfreeInsights/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/childfreeinsightsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ChildfreeInsightsDisclaimer: This podcast is for educational & entertainment purposes. Please consult your advisor before implementing any ideas heard on this podcast.