A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Become a Medicare Insurance Agent
- Get Your Licenses. You are not required to get a Bachelor’s degree in order to be an insurance agent. ...
- Agents: Independent or Captive. You can now decide on which direction you want to take your career. ...
- Become an Insurance Agent. You can sign up with a Field Marketing Organization (FMO). ...
- Receive Classes on How to Become a Medicare Insurance Agent. ...
- Get your health insurance license.
- Complete AHIP Certification.
- Get errors and omissions insurance (E&O insurance)
- Contract with a Medicare Field Marketing Organization (FMO)
- Get contracted and appointed with multiple Medicare companies.
- Complete your annual certifications.
How to become a licensed Medicare agent?
In order to sell Life and Health insurance, you must become licensed. Becoming a licensed Medicare agent is not difficult but there is a process. We list a step-by-step walk-through of the process as you can see below. 1. Becoming a licensed Medicare Agent – Complete a pre-licensing course.
How do you reach out to Medicare prospects?
That being said, you shouldn't ignore the ways you can reach these prospects through modern-day digital channels. Website, email, and social media are all important ways to connect with eligible Medicare prospects.
What does a Medicare insurance agent need to do?
A Medicare insurance agent needs to be familiar with the ins-and-outs of every Medicare plan. They have to know what plan works best for a person and their needs. They need to describe plans in great detail, tailoring their words to what a person wants. A Medicare insurance agent also needs to be a good salesman and marketer.
What certifications are needed to sell Medicare Advantage plans?
These certifications exist to help protect seniors and reward agents who do things the right way. To sell Medicare Advantage plans, you'll have to complete the America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) certification in addition to each carrier's compliance and product certifications.
Is being a Medicare agent worth it?
Medicare agents have significant earning potential and a promising future of stable career growth – but it's not just about the money. Medicare agents also get to help others while taking control of their own careers. For the right person, Medicare sales can be a very rewarding and lucrative career.
How do you make money selling Medicare?
Generally, insurance agents often earn two types of commissions when selling Medicare plans: A dollar amount per application (Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans) or a percentage of the premium sold (Medicare Supplements).
How do I get Medicare clients?
⍟ 14 Ways to Generate Medicare Supplement LeadsBuild & Maintain a Website. ... Social Media Presence. ... Video Marketing. ... Blogging, Writing Articles. ... Email. ... Online Events: Live webinars, podcasts. ... Direct Requests / Client Referrals. ... Lead Swapping Partnerships (Asking other professionals for referrals)More items...
What license do I need to sell Medicare insurance in Florida?
The 2-15 agents license allows an agent to sell all forms of Life Insurance, Health Insurance, Medicare Supplement, HMO, Home Health Care, Managed Care and Long Term Care policies in Florida.
How hard is it to sell Medicare?
No, it's not hard to sell Medicare Supplements. When you're first starting, it should be easy, because everyone on Medicare needs one. It's just an insurance product. You're not a member – you're a policyholder, and that means a lot to people.
Do Medicare agents get residuals?
As an insurance agent, you need a residual income base to create a career with long-term sustainability. Medicare can be that residual income. You can build a 6 figure income by steadily selling Medicare for as little as 3-4 years.
How much do Medicare leads cost?
As mentioned previously, new Medicare Advantage pay $25 for each direct mail lead.
How can I get free Medicare leads?
5 Ways to generate Free Medicare LeadsAsk for Referrals. Referrals or word of mouth may be the oldest, best, and least expensive ways for insurance agents to generate Medicare leads and grow your business. ... Form Community Partnerships. ... Create a Digital Presence. ... Host and Network with Seniors at Events. ... Personal Contact.
Where do Medicare leads come from?
Medicare Leads from Direct Mailer Campaigns. Sending direct mailers to gain Medicare leads is another method agents utilize. Running a direct mailer lead campaign can be pricey, but luckily, carriers and field marketing organizations (FMOs) often offer marketing co-op to help cover a percentage of the cost.
How do I become a certified Medicare agent in Florida?
7 Steps to Become a Medicare Insurance AgentGet Your Health Insurance License.Complete AHIP Certification.Get Errors & Omissions Insurance (E&O Insurance)Contract with a Medicare Wholesaler (FMO)Getting Contracted and Appointed with Multiple Medicare Companies.Complete Your Annual Carrier Medicare Certifications.More items...•
How do I become a Medicare broker in Florida?
Steps to Becoming a Medicare Insurance AgentGet your health insurance license.Complete AHIP Certification.Get errors and omissions insurance (E&O insurance)Contract with a Medicare Field Marketing Organization (FMO)Get contracted and appointed with multiple Medicare companies.Complete your annual certifications.More items...•
Why do insurance agents quit?
26.2% voted a lack of money for leads as their primary reason why they quit. Less important reasons agents quit selling insurance include running out of prospects, personal issues like health problems, and discovering the business wasn't a right fit.
What is the job description of a Medicare agent?
When you become a Medicare insurance agent, there are two main groups you are marketing to. Those are turning 65 and becoming eligible for Medicare health benefits. Those who are disabled, under 65, and are eligible for Medicare. Selling Medicare health insurance can be rewarding in many ways, ...
When do you get your AHIP certification?
AHIP certification will most often start in late June or early July for the following Medicare plan year. For example, getting certified in June or July 2021 will get you certified to sell for the 2022 plan year. The exam costs $175 to take each year.
What is E&O insurance?
E&O insurance is insurance intended to protect you in the event you give a client incorrect or misleading information and they decide to take legal action against you. As well as getting covered through an FMO, these policies can also be purchased through many property and casualty insurance agencies.
Do you need a life insurance license to sell Medicare?
Take note that many health insurance exam vendors also offer life insurance certifications at the same time. While it is not required, selling Medicare and having a life insurance license is a good idea – it provides you the option to offer clients other products they may need down the road.
Does Medicare require special certification?
Understand that selling certain Medicare products does require special certification as determined by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS regulates Medicare plans, the insurance carriers, and insurance agents and agencies who sell them.
Is selling Medicare insurance rewarding?
Selling Medicare health insurance can be rewarding in many ways, including personally, professionally, and financially. You are helping a lot of people who need it and building strong relationships along the way.
Is Selling Medicare Lucrative?
In short, yes. The average Medicare Advantage policy pays around $262 a year in commission if the purchase replaces an existing plan. However, you can get approximately double that — $525 — if you write up a new Medicare Advantage plan for someone who hasn't had one before.
Medicare Licenses and Training
Medicare Advantage is a great line to sell, whether you're a newcomer to selling insurance or an experienced insurance professional looking to diversify your portfolio. But no matter how much experience you have, you need proper Medicare insurance sales agent training to complete the certification process.
How to Choose Medicare Carriers and Plans to Sell
Most new agents want to rush in and offer every Medicare Advantage plan from day one. It's an understandable ambition, but it can quickly become overwhelming.
Ordering Medicare Enrollment Kits from Carriers
Each carrier has its own Medicare enrollment kit, which includes handouts that policyholders need when they're considering signing up. Different carriers include various materials in their kits, but most contain:
Help Protect Yourself with E&O Insurance
As a Medicare insurance sales agent, your role is to help your clients prepare for the unexpected and help protect themselves from financial risks. You might have the best intentions, but sometimes things don't work out as planned.
Start Working Toward a Rewarding Career Selling Medicare
All of these certifications, training requirements, and legal protections can make selling Medicare insurance feel overwhelming at first. But don't let them deter you from reaching your end goal — a rewarding and lucrative career.
Get Your License
A career in the medicare insurance field requires a health insurance license. You’ll apply for this license in your respective state. The coursework will teach you about health insurance basics.
Medicare Training
The next step is completing a Medicare training course. You’ll enroll through America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) to complete the training.
Choose an FMO
An FMO stands for Field Marketing Organization. An FMO is licensed to disburse insurance plans for the insurance companies. Many health insurance carriers don’t partner with agents and will hire you as a permanent employee.
Forge Agreements
To sell Medicare products, partner with health insurance companies. If you want to sell with Cigna, for example, you’ll need an agreement with the company. The approval process may take some time, and the approval times depend on the carrier.
Is Becoming a Medicare Insurance Agent Worth the Effort?
A Medicare insurance agent is a rewarding career choice because you’re helping vulnerable seniors who need financial support for their medical needs. Becoming a Medicare sales agent is simple.
How to become a Medicare agent?
1. Becoming a licensed Medicare Agent – Complete a pre-licensing course. Courses tend to be similar in price and content. Depending on your own specific learning/studying style, you can choose to take the course in a traditional classroom, online or via self-study.
What to bring to Medicare exam?
What to Bring to the exam: Becoming a licensed Medicare Agent. An original copy of the Certificate of Completion from a completed pre-licensing course of study. A current, signed form of identification.
Does Crowe and Associates offer E&O insurance?
Most companies will require that you have an active Errors and Omissions (liability insurance) Policy. As a matter of fact, Crowe and Associates offers its contracted agents E&O insurance at a very competitive rate. Click here to learn more about E&O insurance through Crowe and Associates.
Get Your Resident State Health Insurance Producer License
The very first step to becoming a Medicare health insurance agent is obtaining a health insurance producer license from your resident state.
Carry Out AHIP Medicare Health Insurance Training
Besides studying and sitting for your health insurance license, you’ll also need to complete annual training with the AHIP if you want to sell Medicare products.
Choose an FMO
The next step to becoming a health insurance agent is to choose a suitable FMO. FMO stands for Field Marketing Organization. You can also opt to go with an IMO, which stands for Insurance Marketing Organization.
Get E&O Insurance
Before you can contract with most carriers you will need to take out E&O insurance. E&O insurance protects you from liability should you ever find yourself embroiled in court proceedings over accused negligence.
Pass Carrier-Specific Certification Exams
Depending on which carriers you contract with, you may also need to complete carrier-specific training and certifications to sell their products. Cigna, Anthem, and Aetna are some examples of carriers that require agents to complete certification exams.
Keep Up Your License
If you want to sell Medicare insurance plans, you’ll also need to be prepared to maintain your health insurance license each year.
Invest in Medicare Health Insurance Agent Training
If you want to learn how to sell Medicare health insurance and be successful at it, sitting the required licensing and certification exams isn’t all there is to it.