By ANNA WILDE MATHEWS of the Wall Street Journal

Disability-insurance benefits from the workplace and the government are getting harder to come by-and that's putting more pressure on consumers to purchase their own coverage in case a medical condition keeps them from working.

But disability insurance can be confusing. Policies may include conditions that make it tough for people filing claims to actually qualify for the benefits. And some policies may limit payouts for certain diagnoses, particularly mental illness. To protect themselves, consumers considering buying disability coverage need to read the fine print.

The percentage of companies that paid all or part of the cost of workers' private long-term disability insurance fell to 48% last year, from 59% in 2002, according to LIMRA, an association of financial-services and insurance companies. Many employers are "taking a step back in terms of what they pay and putting the onus on employees" to purchase richer benefits if they choose, says Michael Bailey, a principal at Mercer, a consulting unit of Marsh & McLennan Cos.

Vetting a Policy

If you are thinking about purchasing disability coverage, here are some things to check:

Details of what it pays: If it's a percentage of your income, does that include just your base salary, or other things like commissions?
Portability: If it's being purchased through your employer, can you keep it if you leave?
What triggers the benefit: Do you have to be unable to do any job comparable to your own?
Limits on payouts: For long-term policies, are benefits for certain conditions, like mental illness, capped?

Here are some online sources of information:

Social Security Administration www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10029.html
Council for Disability Awareness www.disabilitycanhappen.org