Be prepared for AEP so that you can best serve your clients below is a checklist for you:

1) Complete AHIP Certification

You must have current certification in order to sell Medicare Advantage plans. The caveat is a very small amount of insurance carriers will allow you to take their compliance test in replacement of AHIP but that is not the majority. Also, check with your FMO as they and or the carriers may offer a discount on the AHIP $175 fee. Some carriers even cover the entire cost if you are a top seller of their plans!

2) Review Carrier Plans

Every year, Medicare carriers make changes to their plans. Some plan benefits may change while others may be discontinued altogether. As such, it’s important that you review the plans offered by each carrier in your state or states you chose to sell in so that you can best advise your clients on which plan is right for them. In addition, you may find NEW plans or NEW carriers popping up keep those in mind as a possible great addition to your portfolio.

3) Complete Carrier Certifications

In order to sell Medicare plans, you must also be certified by each carrier. The certification process is different for each carrier, so be sure to check their individual requirements. As a note, this is also required in order to keep your renewals!

4) Anticipate Your Client’s Needs

Medicare beneficiaries have a lot of options when it comes to their coverage. It’s important that you take the time to understand your client’s needs so that you can advise them on plan changes and suitability. If you know there will be a plan disruption, be prepared and think of how to get in front of it.

5) Retention

Depending on the concentration of your clients, you may want to host a Plan Review Meeting. This works really well if you have a large demographic within a certain carrier plan and radius. However, if your client book is scattered and has many varying plans this really wouldn’t make sense. You can host a breakfast or lunch to review the current plan the group is on and any changes coming down the pike. I recommend doing this AFTER October 1rst when everyone has received their Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) and you can compliantly discuss plans. You would review the plan outlines and can ask the carriers for materials such as side-by-side comparisons. Just remember while you can TALK plans you can NOT take any enrollment forms until October 15th.

6) Prospecting

There are many ways to branch out and grow your business. Working off referrals, Retail table opportunities such as Walmart’s & CVS, health fairs, RV street marketing, and seminars. Seminars seem to be very popular so let’s talk about those a bit more.

There are two types of Seminars, let’s clarify them for you now below:

• Medicare Educational Event (Medicare 101): Remember this is NOT planned-specific, your intention is to educate on the basics of Medicare. You can hand out educational material and many carriers have educational pieces you can use. While you can NOT take enrollments or discuss plan specifics at this event you CAN book follow-up appointments to do so. Another point to remember is the setting must not be one on one or in someone’s residence. Remember if serving a meal, it must be $15 or less. We have a great program to drive attendance talk with me today about it!
• Sales Presentation: During AEP, many carriers will support or even request agents to present their products. This is a great opportunity to grow your client base and lean on some carrier support. Many times, they will advertise the events and provide you with all the materials and giveaways you need. Each carrier will review expectations but it is common to review the basics of Medicare as an opener, then dive into the plan specifics they offer.

This is quite a bit to review and understand so why not reach out to us to help you!

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