Medicare Blog

when can i sell medicare advantage plans

by Pinkie Schumm Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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How To Sell Medicare Policies If you’re selling Medicare supplements, you’re not restricted to open enrollment. Many people buy Medicare Advantage and Medicare supplements when they turn 65, not just during open enrollment.

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. These certifications exist to help protect seniors and reward agents who do things the right way.Feb 22, 2022

Full Answer

How do I start selling Medicare Advantage plans?

Before you can start selling Medicare Advantage plans, you must receive the proper training, licensing, and certifications. Check with your state’s department of insurance to learn about state-specific requirements. After you’re licensed, the next step is marketing your services. First, you need to be licensed to sell Medicare plans in your state.

Is now a good time to get involved selling Medicare insurance?

It is probably the best time to get involved selling Medicare insurance plans. And one more thing to consider. A lot of agents are retiring, getting out of the business. They’re getting too old! That’s good for us agents that are in the field selling Medicare Advantage plans. Over time, you’ll see LESS competition.

Is it easy to sell Medicare Advantage insurance?

It makes life a little bit easier selling Medicare Advantage insurance, combining a high first-year commission product like final expense. DD: Walk me through the process from start to finish for someone interested in selling Medicare insurance successfully?

Is selling Medicare supplements a good career for beginners?

There is a lot of opportunity to start a lucrative career selling Medicare Supplements and Medicare Advantage plans. Medicare sales offer a great first-year commission and annual residuals, creating a huge income potential by providing ongoing compensation for years after the sale.

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When can you present a Medicare Advantage plan?

Sign up for a Medicare Advantage Plan (with or without drug coverage) or a Medicare drug plan. During the 7‑month period that starts 3 months before the month you turn 65, includes the month you turn 65, and ends 3 months after the month you turn 65.

Can you cancel a Medicare Advantage plan at any time?

No, you can't switch Medicare Advantage plans whenever you want. But you do have options if you're unhappy with your plan. You can jump to another plan or drop your Medicare Advantage plan and change to original Medicare during certain times each year.

Is selling Medicare Advantage lucrative?

Selling Medicare can be very lucrative, but just like any other self-starter type of job, the more effort you put in, the bigger the payoff. When it comes to making money selling Medicare, there are two main ways you can earn income which include commissions and residual income.

Can you sell Medicare supplements year-round?

If you'd prefer to avoid CMS red tape, then Medicare Supplements are the products to sell. Plus, there's no annual enrollment so you can sell them year-round!

What is the biggest disadvantage of Medicare Advantage?

Medicare Advantage can become expensive if you're sick, due to uncovered copays. Additionally, a plan may offer only a limited network of doctors, which can interfere with a patient's choice. It's not easy to change to another plan. If you decide to switch to a Medigap policy, there often are lifetime penalties.

Can you switch out of Medicare Advantage?

Yes, you can elect to switch to traditional Medicare from your Medicare Advantage plan during the Medicare Open Enrollment period, which runs from October 15 to December 7 each year.

How do you make money selling Medicare Advantage plans?

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. These certifications exist to help protect seniors and reward agents who do things the right way.

Is it easy 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.

How much do Medicare leads cost?

As mentioned previously, new Medicare Advantage pay $25 for each direct mail lead.

Is selling Medicare insurance a good career?

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.

Can you sell Medicare door to door?

MA/PD PLANS May not market to beneficiaries door to door, including leaving materials at a beneficiary's doorstep. May call a beneficiary they enrolled in a plan to discuss plan business, as well as discuss the availability of other plan options/types within the same parent organization.

What are three main ways in which Medicare sales occur?

There are three different types of Medicare products sold by agents and brokers: Medicare Supplement plans (Also called Medigap plans), Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare Part D Rx plans.

What Is Medicare Advantage?

DD: I’d like to start with the basics, Luis. I’m sure there are a lot of people who have heard about Medicare, maybe they’re brand new agents or so...

Is Medicare Advantage A Tough Sell?

DD: When I started in final expense sales, I saw many Medicare Advantage prospects, but I never sold any Medicare Advantage plans.Why? Because agen...

How To Get Certified To Sell Medicare Advantage Plans?

DD: What’s the process for somebody who wants to learn how to become a Medicare Advantage insurance agent?You have to do more than getting your ins...

What Happens After AHIP?

Once you get that AHIP done then you’ve done about 70% of your required certifications.Each carrier that you’re appointed with wants to make sure t...

What Are The Long-Term Benefits Of Selling Medicare Insurance?

DD: What would you describe as the long-term advantages selling Medicare Advantage plans as your primary line of business?LM: When you’re doing cro...

Commission For Selling Medicare Advantage Plans?

DD: A lot of agents are looking at this like we’ve talked about it from a final expense standpoint.They’re used to getting pretty high first year c...

How Long Would It Take To Write 500 Sales?

DD: How long do you think it would take to write 500 pieces of business? Somebody who’s serious about this business, they’re full-time, they really...

Can You Cross Sell?

DD: When we look at new Medicare Advantage clients, ones that we found or wrote from maybe one of these referral partners, what’s the guidelines on...

When Can You Sell Medicare Advantage?

DD: A lot of agents look at the Medicare Advantage business and think they can only sell these products when the person turns 65 and then if not, o...

Why Sell Medicare Advantage Plans?

Typically, insurance carriers offer higher commissions for MA plans than Medicare Supplements or Part D plans.

How to Sell Medicare Advantage Plans

Before you can start selling Medicare Advantage plans, you must receive the proper training, licensing, and certifications. Check with your state’s department of insurance to learn about state-specific requirements. After you’re licensed, the next step is marketing your services.

When Can I Sell Medicare Advantage?

Many Medicare-eligibles have restrictions on when they can enroll in new plans. You need to know the specifics of each enrollment period and how they apply to your clients.

Selling Medicare Advantage Over the Phone

You may have heard that you can sell Medicare Supplements over the phone, but you want to know how to sell Medicare Advantage plans over the phone.

How Much Can I Make Selling Medicare Advantage Plans?

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) sets maximum compensation amounts that carriers can pay agents for sales. Click here to read more about agent compensation.

Important Terms to Know When Selling Medicare Advantage Plans

You want to answer clients’ questions with confidence, so it’s important to know the terms they’ll ask about. Here are some common terms beneficiaries will ask about:

Start Selling Medicare Advantage Insurance Today

Selling Medicare Advantage plans can be a lucrative career. At Senior Market Advisors, we give our agents tools for success such as extensive training so you can answer questions with confidence.

How much can you make Selling Medicare?

Selling Medicare is part of the financial services industry, which has a track record of generating more millionaires than any other industry.

Get Licensed to Sell Medicare

In order to sell Medicare, you must become a licensed life and health insurance agent in your state (or any state that you plan on selling in).

Partner with a Medicare FMO

A Field Marketing Organization (FMO) is the link between Medicare insurance carriers and independent Medicare sales agents.

Complete AHIP & Carrier Certifications

AHIP (America’s Health Insurance Plans) is an industry-recognized certification test. If you want to sell Medicare Advantage products, then you must become AHIP certified for most carriers.

Prepare for Success

Now that you are licensed, contracted, and certified, it’s time to create your Medicare Business Plan. This includes setting your production goals, developing a lead generation and client retention strategy, and leveraging the support available through your Medicare FMO.

Selling Medicare Basics

Before you can start selling any type of Medicare Advantage or Medicare Supplement plan, you’ll need to first complete these requirements:

Who Is Your Target Market?

While checking off your certifications, you can start honing in on your selling strategy. The first step is narrowing in on who you’re selling to. Baby boomers, yes. But to really sell effectively, get into their mindset and view the sales from their perspective.

Why Medicare Advantage?

Understanding the value proposition behind Medicare Advantage will be key in closing your sales. Generally, the major selling point of Medicare Advantage plans is that they have no or low monthly premiums and they cover more than what Original Medicare does However, the mark of a savvy agent is the ability to peel apart the plan benefits and apply what’s relevent to the specific person they’re servicing..

Medicare Compliance

The Medicare industry has a strict set of compliance standards to protect consumers. Knowing and following these rules is a must for all Medicare agents.

Set Yourself Up for Success

The Medicare market is an intricate one to navigate. You can take the guesswork out of selling Medicare products by teaming up with an experienced partner.

Standard Medicare Supplement Coverage

To make it easier for you to compare one Medicare Supplement policy to another, Indiana allows 8 standard plans to be sold. The plans are labeled with a letter, A through N. Plans H, I, and J are no longer offered, and Plans C and F are only available to people who were eligible for Medicare before January, 2020.

How To Get Certified To Sell Medicare Advantage Plans

DD: Whats the process for somebody who wants to learn how to become a Medicare Advantage insurance agent?

Easier Than You Think

So is it that complex? Is it hard? No. You just got to do a little bit of homework.

Passive Income Is King

DD: Ill add in my perspective. Ive been in the business since 2011 and most of my business has been focused on final expense.

Why Sell Medicare Advantage

DD: Explain to agents what the opportunity is in selling Medicare Advantage plans to clients?

Learn Cms Compliance Rules And Regulations

The Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines is where all the compliance rules live. These are updated semi-regularly, but you can always check the latest version on this CMS page.

What Are The Long

DD: What would you describe as the long-term advantages selling Medicare Advantage plans as your primary line of business?

How long does Medicare store scope of appointment?

Also, MedicareCENTER will store the scope of appointment indefinitely, so you can be sure you have it on file for the required 10 years. If you're selling Medicare Advantage over the phone, you cannot skip the scope of appointment. Utilize the handy or email or text feature and you'll be done in less than 3 minutes!

How to become a Medicare guru?

Here are your basic steps: Establish yourself as a Medicare guru in your community. Develop a marketing plan to ensure prospects are calling you (since you can't call them). Offer Medicare Advantage to your existing client base. Send a scope of appointment (SOA) using MedicareCENTER.

How to start marketing specific plans?

The easiest way to start marketing specific plans or carriers is to go to the carrier's agent portal and select a piece they've created.

Can you make outbound calls to sell Medicare Advantage?

How to Get Prospects to Call You. In general, you can't make outbound calls to sell Medicare Advantage plans. There are a couple of exceptions, like calling existing clients or returning phone calls, but it's mostly off-limits. In order to sell Medicare Advantage over the phone, the obvious hurdle is finding a way to get on the phone with prospects!

Can you call a non-Medicare enrollee?

You can call current enrollees, including those in non-Medicare products, to discuss plan business. You can return phone calls or messages. You can call when you get permission, such as from a business reply card or an email requesting a return call. You can't make unsolicited phone calls to prospective enrollees.

Can you make unsolicited calls to Medicare?

You can't make unsolicited phone calls to prospective enrollees. You can't call about other business as a way to generate Medicare leads (bait and switch). You can't call referrals – the referred person needs to call you.

Is Medicare Advantage a perfect system?

Even still, they're not perfect. We often hear from clients in January and February that they had no clue they signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan. So, it's not a perfect system, but it's strict for a reason. Sometimes, it's more helpful to focus on what you CAN do versus what you can't.

What to do when selling Medicare supplements?

When you sell Medicare supplements from home, you need to offer a variety of products to meet each beneficiary’s needs. This includes supplement products, prescription drug coverage, Medicare Advantage products, and ancillary products. Ensure the products you are offering benefit the client, not a push for your pocketbook.

What is Medicare Advantage?

One of the benefits is the sale of Medicare Advantage or a Medicare supplement that provides you with a residual income for years. This is a passive income you enjoy the benefit of from every sale. Working as an independent agent means the commissions pay directly to you.

How to remain independent with Medicare?

To remain independent, you will likely need to obtain your insurance company contracts through a Medicare Insurance FMO. An FMO will work to obtain the best contracts for you to sell clients. Their support in finding you the best product to offer frees your time to meet clients and close sales.

How many clients does Medicare have?

Your income is only limited by the time you put into working. On average, a Medicare insurance agent in business for five (5) years has around 400-500 clients.

How many people will be on Medicare in 2060?

Projections are that by 2060 there will be 98 million people in that age range. The estimation is 21.1 million over age 85 in 2030. What this means when it comes to Medicare insurance sales is that one in every seven people, the equivalent of 15.2% of the population, meets Medicare age qualifications.

How many Americans have Medicare Advantage?

Ambition to put forth the effort to make sales. About 1/3 of Americans obtain their Medicare through Medicare Advantage Plans. The other 2/3 of the eligible persons have original Medicare, and about 81% of those enroll in supplement coverage.

Do insurance agents have to be vested?

Normally agents are vested from the first day, so you have true ownership of your business and policy renewals. Many insurance carriers provide vacation packages and exotic trips to their top-selling agents. The perks are great, and the more “extras” you offer clients, the more profit you make.

What is Medicare quoting engine?

2. Medicare Quoting Tool / Online Quoting Engine - A Quoting Engine makes it easier for agents. to have access to accurate, up-to-date pricing and plan details for the nations top senior.

How many baby boomers are turning 65?

If you are looking for information on how to become a licensed Medicare insurance agent, this article is meant for you. With 11,000 Baby Boomers turning 65 every day for at least another decade, it’s apparent that the Medicare market will continue its tremendous growth for the foreseeable future. According to the Census Bureau, by 2030, all ...

Do you need certification for Medicare Supplement?

Medicare supplement products however, do not require any additional certifications beyond your state’s licensing requirements.

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