MA plans for 2009

[tommyk]

I have heard there is discussion going on now for changes in the 2009 MA plans, no surprise there.

I have heard of the cooling off period, where you can only present one product to the client then have to come back 48 hours later to show them something else..seniors are just too confused to understand any more than that.

I have heard that there will be no cold calling a senior. The senior must contact you and then you are only allowed to discuss the topic the senior wants information on..no additional products again.

Has anyone heard anything else?

 

[GreenSky]

I've been told that SNP plans have been frozen. No more new plans until 2010.

Rick

 

[TimLett]

Being the good conservative that I am, I absolutely despise seeing more government today than I saw yesterday. I was taken back to some quotes about government and all of its regulations by the greatest President of the 20th century, Ronald Reagan. Here is what he thought about it.

-Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them.

-Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves. (Note: In my opinion, seniors do have a lot to think about and it can be confusing. But, more regulation of this extent implies that most of them are incapable of making any kind of decision.)

-Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.

-Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.

-Governments tend not to solve problems, only to rearrange them.

-No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth!

-The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.

Yep, I think we'd do much better to make a move back towards this kind of thinking. Its going to get so bad that you need an act of congress to sell a damn policy.

 

[Bob_The_Insurance_Guy]

Whatever they do, I hope they make it more difficult for the "stick-em-and-bleed" non-insurance agents to do business. They're the ones making it difficult for the professionals.

100% of my MA and Med Supp business comes from referrals, informational meetings, and current clients. I'm smarter than CMS, so I don't need to worry myself about getting around their stipulations.

I only go in with one plan, because, beforehand, I ascertain who the docs and meds are, and what their comfort level is. I take 2-3 visits to discuss Medicare and the plan with them (no other agent I know does this).

Let's step back a little. If you had someone, after meeting and talking with you, suggest a product, and you said "no", how much confidence would you have in him/her if he came back, time and time again, and said, "OK, what about this plan?"

I don't like CMS anymore than anyone else. It takes me about 2 seconds to figure out how to get around, or not have to deal with, their most recent idiocratic idea.

 

[HomeService]

I have heard that there will be no cold calling a senior. The senior must contact you and then you are only allowed to discuss the topic the senior wants information on..no additional products again.

I thought cold calling was always a "no-no", I trained on MA in 2005 or 2006 -and it was that way for sure back then.

 

[The Rabbi]

If you don't qualify them on the phone and know exactly the correct solution then you shouldn't be wasting gas. You are supposed to be going there to review the best plan for their situation and get the application. If you don't then I get them.

 

[GreenSky]

I thought cold calling was always a "no-no", I trained on MA in 2005 or 2006 -and it was that way for sure back then.

There has never been a CMS rule (that I know of) against cold-calling. The carriers imposed it. AARP says it's not allowed for their products and so do some others.

The big item was door to door which many agents assumed meant cold calling.

Rick

 

[midwestbroker]

I think CMS should go full board on this one...

If a senior wants to buy a car, they should test drive it but the dealership cannot sell it to them until the initial cool off period of 2 days.

If they are grocery shopping, they should have a think about it lane where seniors can go through their cart and decide if they really want to buy it.

If they want drugs, then they have to read a 157 page description of the FDA tests, clinical trials and all other data for each drug prior to picking up their prescription.

My view of CMS rules are this...

If you have the clients best interests in mind, then you are fine. If would change what you are doing when someone is watching, they you are doing it wrong.

 

[Bob_The_Insurance_Guy]

If you don't qualify them on the phone and know exactly the correct solution then you shouldn't be wasting gas. You are supposed to be going there to review the best plan for their situation and get the application. If you don't then I get them.

If we were not talking about the Senior Market, I would tend to agree with you. The ones that attend my informational meetings, and the ones that are referred to me, need to get an overall view of Medicare. That way, we are both starting off at home base.

Then, from there - whether it's over the phone, or in person - we discuss, IN GENERAL, different options.

That is technically two meetings right there - one to discuss Medicare, and two to discuss options.

At that point, if I haven't already, I find out who they see and what they take.

The third meeting is where I sit down with them, or call them, if they are too far away, and uncover, based on their needs and their individual situation, what plan, and what company would best suit their needs for this upcoming year.

If, at that point, they don't like my recommendation, then I will gladly hand them over to you. I'm not a big believer in constantly pulling something else out to show them - very unprofessional.

 

[SC Local LAH Agent]

Glad I only have to deal with this for part of the year!!! There is no fighting CMS they make the rules and we adjust and sell. Rules just seem to always weed out a few more of the hacks and make the true professionals stand out.