Extra secret comp for MA plans?

[wehotex]

This happens ALL THE TIME! MA carriers give the $$ to the FMOs in hopes that will "spread the wealth" and use the funds to stimulate sales of their products. In some cases, greedy FMOs merely use the money to pay for their new lake house. It's a dirty azz business.

 

[MedicareWAA]

If it were above board, you'd think it wouldn't be kept so secret from everyone. Feels like a kickback. So I guess they must have found some loophole that lets it continue to happen. If the FMO fat cats use the money to get fatter, that's one thing. It doesn't really hurt us street guys. But when the large direct to consumer brokers get all that money it makes it harder for little guys like me to compete.

Walter

 

[Travis Price]

If it were above board, you'd think it wouldn't be kept so secret from everyone

It's not hidden. Anyone that's been in the business knows companies offer marketing dollars to FMO's.

Just because YOU just found out about it doesn't make it sketchy.

 

[rousemark]

So I have a friend who sells in one of these large telephone agencies that advertise on the television all day long.

She said they afford the commercials because a few of the MA plans give them a bunch of extra money for marketing. Like MILLIONS and MILLIONS of dollars on top of the commissions and the overrides and stuff. They don't even mention the plans in their advertising. It's just extra money for them to market themselves.

I have 300 MA clients and my upline isn't giant but they have maybe 100 agents, so we aren't big fish but we aren't minnows either. Why don't street brokers or their uplines get any of this secret money and how is it even allowed in the first place? I can't compete with the call centers getting that much extra money on the side and there's no way the plans giving them that money don't expect something in return.

My upline gets their override but they don't get any extra stash of money unless it's for something specific like paying an appointment fee or doing health risk surveys.

Does anyone here know how this is legal and assuming it is legal, how do I get some of the money to level the playing field?!?!

Not happy right now ...

Walter

100 agents is a minnow in the grand scheme of things. There are IMOs that post on this forum that probably have 10+ times that amount.

 

[myinsurebiz]

Get with an Upline that shares . .

 

[MedicareWAA]

It's not hidden. Anyone that's been in the business knows companies offer marketing dollars to FMO's.

Just because YOU just found out about it doesn't make it sketchy.

Do you think CMS knows about it? You may consider it in plain view but I have a feeling CMS would disagree. Dunno.

Walter

 

[DonP]

I know I got 5 fig marketing $'s . No co-op bs . Straight marketing $, s for mailers . You got to be doing big vol .

 

[Travis Price]

Do you think CMS knows about it? You may consider it in plain view but I have a feeling CMS would disagree. Dunno.

Walter

CMS doesn't need to know about it...

Marketing money is not compensation.

It's money that you get to market services and not tied to specific production of MAPD plans.

Do I think CMS knows? Maybe not about specific instances, but certainly the practice.

Furthermore, do you really think that insurers are going to jeopardize the compensation they get from CMS to give you money if they thought it was noncompliant?


UHC offers agents leads to sell their products. It's an item of value. However, it's not an item of value based on the sale of a product.

You may not see it that way, but it doesn't really matter when that's the way it is.

 

[Bill_Kiray]

Couple of thoughts here:

1. We invest both money we receive in Overwrite commission and Carrier Marketing dollars into our agents/agencies business plans.
2. When we get money from the carriers, it is almost always because we've gone to them with a comprehensive plan involving markets, agent and agency production targets, and marketing methods.
3. We're then held accountable by the carrier to the performance on that plan, in terms of the enrollments generated in the markets we specified to them in the plan.
4. If other FMO's have figured out how to get carrier marketing money and buy a boat, I'd love to know how. We have typically had to give a fairly detailed accounting of how the money was spent to generate the apps we promised in our business plan.

There is absolutely money available to producing agents to help fund their AEP marketing plans, not just from us but from any legitimate FMO operating in the Medicare space.

Here's two videos I've done on this subject. 1st one just launched today, and the previous one I did a number of months ago.

Whether you're working with us or not, we have a business plan template that you can use to build your AEP plan. If you'd like it to help in getting $$ from your FMO, I'll be happy to send it to you. Just DM me...

P.S. - Yes...I know that I was wearing a mask in one of the videos. Lots of agents like to comment on the mask wearing, so I'll just acknowledge it up front...

 

[Todd King]

Most of the big FMOs get marketing money from the carriers. This is how some offer 50/50 marketing co-ops or free leads.

There you go, fixed that for you.