Agent Support Call Centers

[newagent2013]

Hello,

I am not a health/life agent yet but have been thinking about selling for Senior.

Which carrier/health insurance company has the best agent/broker support call center, in terms of both quality of the reps and wait time during Medicare AEP? Would anyone be willing to share any superb experiences or horror stories?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Josh]

That question is going to vary a bit. I used to be a carrier rep and frankly I think I was amazing, but since I'm not doing that anymore that doesn't help you much. A bunch of my peers still work for different carriers and serve similar functions.

Are you looking for New York carriers? Really in the senior market for MA plans it's going to come down to what plans are competitive and not so much what you want the support for the agent to be like. When I was at Aetna most of the bother broker reps struggled and they couldn't process an application right half the time, but once the member was enrolled they were treated like royalty.


Really what you probably want to find is a good upline and the right products.

 

[newagent2013]

Yeah. I guess the major ones are UHC, Emblem, HealthFirst, Empire BCBS/WellPoint, and CDPHP. I know some of these companies operate in other states as well. I definitely agree with you, it all comes down to what the best product for the beneficiary is.

Just like I value customer support for my bank, etc., I also value agent support. I was just wondering what some peoples experiences were.

 

[Josh]

It's really going to depend on the market. Are you in NYC? My guess from the carrier mix you mention is you're out near Albany. I don't know if BCBS contracts brokers over there, I know they don't in the Syracuse or Binghamton markets.

UHC is going to be a giant PITA in many ways, but they usually have a pretty good SNP product.

These are two very different critters though, taking a look at your bank. An agent should be up and running and know their products enough to recommend and represent the best carriers for the folks they serve. It really does sound like you need a good FMO/GA to help you with that. Agent support matters, but if you have a good upline they can help support you even if the carrier is more client friendly than agent friendly.

What makes you want to get into the senior market? How familiar are you with the marketing restrictions on MA plans?