MA's Outta Here

[MedSuppPro]

This week I sold 21 Medicare Supplements and ZERO Medicare Advantage plans!

People are hearing the president's message loud and clear -- MA's are toast!

​

 

[policy doctor]

Not my experience!! People want to hold on to their money.

They're even transitioning over to an MAPD in order to save that $35/40 premium on a drug plan.


Gee...I wrote 40 ma's this week.

How about that for braggadocio!?!

 

[Tom Highway]

Good grief, where do you people do all this business?
21 supps in one week?
40 MAPD plans in one week? During lock-in? When you can't really make attempts to contact people other than mail or events/referrals?

Is this one of those deals where we have to divide the number stated by a factor to get the actual number?

 

[policy doctor]

Tom...(lol)

Please don't believe everything you read.

 

[Tom Highway]

Tom...(lol)

Please don't believe everything you read.

I know!
I was waiting for somebody to reply so I could brag on MY numbers....

Last week I wrote:
- 60 Final Expense policies at a minimum of $125 monthly premium per plan
- 24 Long Term Care policies, but they were each a husband and wife, so it's really 48 Long Term Care policies
- 32 MAPD plans
- 12 Med Supps, because I ran out of time at the end of the week.

 

[Josh]

This week I sold 21 Medicare Supplements and ZERO Medicare Advantage plans!

People are hearing the president's message loud and clear -- MA's are toast!

​

So because one agent in one area sold more med supps then ma's, that means ma's are done for? Don't get me wrong, MA sales are down from where they were in years past and that might very well be a trend, but they're not going the way of the dinosaur yet. If Obama really wanted to make MA's less attractive then he and his should have focused on enhancing the Original Medicare benefits instead of letting part b slide to $110.50 in premium and inpatient hospitalization go to $1,100. If Original Medicare was as good of a program as Obama tries to give everyone the impression it is then seniors wouldn't have such an incentive to switch to MA plans.

Not for nothing, but with an election next year and while 30% of Americans strongly approve of the job the President is doing, 40% strongly disapprove of the job the President is doing. Daily Presidential Tracking Poll - Rasmussen Reports

If Obama really didn't like the MA program he should have done that before he used up all his superman bonus points pushing through things like CARS (cash for clunkers) or handing out this bailout money that the government apparently has just laying around. BTW- It's hard to believe how much the Pharmaceutical companies are making off of Medicare Part D, I very much doubt that if Obama wants a chance at a second term he can afford to lose them, apparently he does to:
Internal Memo Confirms Big Giveaways In White House Deal With Big Pharma

Like it or not the MA business is a good industry for politicians to support when it comes time to take action, regardless of what they like to say in speeches.

 

[MedSuppPro]

Tom,

Sure you can. If they have their term-letter in hand you can write them up now! These are all January 1st effective dates.

My past posts clearly indicate that I write both MedSupp's and MA's. People tell me they want off the MA roller coaster. I think an agent needs to explain the difference and let the consumer decide.

I have nothing to gain by inflating my numbers. Again, look back at all my posts... Maybe I should have left the number out. But, then some wisenheimer would had questioned that.

 

[Tom Highway]

Tom,
Sure you can. If they have their term-letter in hand you can write them up now! These are all January 1st effective dates.

My past posts clearly indicate that I write both MedSupp's and MA's. People tell me they want off the MA roller coaster. I think an agent needs to explain the difference and let the consumer decide.

I have nothing to gain by inflating my numbers. Again, look back at all my posts... Maybe I should have left the number out. But, then some wisenheimer would had questioned that.

I'm not calling BS on you at all. I would like for you to qualify your statement and the premise of this thread though.

You wrote 21 med supps this week, and now you say they'll be for effective dates of Jan 1 and that they had their term letters.

How did you meet these 21 people?

Could you consistently make these kinds of numbers every week?

What is the term letter about - is it a MAPD/PFFS plan that sent it? If so, I would think they may be a little bitter on medicare advantage, too.

Why could you not conclude, based on your previous posts, that CMS is moving to the goal of having just a handful of national or regional MA providers, and this is all part of thinning the herd?

I'm trying to move out of medicare advantage myself because I'm seeing the handwriting on the wall too. Many of the people I see are fed up with having to evaluate their options every year and filter through all the crap, always wondering what their new copays will be and if they can keep going to their doctor. To me, med supps solves this problem, and med supps have been solving this problem a lot longer than medicare advantage has.

 

[carol369]

I'm not calling BS on you at all. I would like for you to qualify your statement and the premise of this thread though.

You wrote 21 med supps this week, and now you say they'll be for effective dates of Jan 1 and that they had their term letters.

How did you meet these 21 people?

Could you consistently make these kinds of numbers every week?

What is the term letter about - is it a MAPD/PFFS plan that sent it? If so, I would think they may be a little bitter on medicare advantage, too.

Why could you not conclude, based on your previous posts, that CMS is moving to the goal of having just a handful of national or regional MA providers, and this is all part of thinning the herd?

I'm trying to move out of medicare advantage myself because I'm seeing the handwriting on the wall too. Many of the people I see are fed up with having to evaluate their options every year and filter through all the crap, always wondering what their new copays will be and if they can keep going to their doctor. To me, med supps solves this problem, and med supps have been solving this problem a lot longer than medicare advantage has.

Here in Michigan many of us are working at the Blue Cross walk in centers. Blue Cross is getting rid of options C & D of their PFFS. So, we have an SEP going on right now. But after doing this for a few weeks, I have found that Med Supps would be better for a lot of people, but they can't always afford the price. So, I make outside appts to talk about companies other than Blue Cross with better rates.

 

[jdeasy]

I'm not calling BS on you at all. I would like for you to qualify your statement and the premise of this thread though.

You wrote 21 med supps this week, and now you say they'll be for effective dates of Jan 1 and that they had their term letters.

How did you meet these 21 people?

Could you consistently make these kinds of numbers every week?

What is the term letter about - is it a MAPD/PFFS plan that sent it? If so, I would think they may be a little bitter on medicare advantage, too.

Why could you not conclude, based on your previous posts, that CMS is moving to the goal of having just a handful of national or regional MA providers, and this is all part of thinning the herd?

I'm trying to move out of medicare advantage myself because I'm seeing the handwriting on the wall too. Many of the people I see are fed up with having to evaluate their options every year and filter through all the crap, always wondering what their new copays will be and if they can keep going to their doctor. To me, med supps solves this problem, and med supps have been solving this problem a lot longer than medicare advantage has.

I'm sure he means their termination letters from plans that won't be offered for next year. My phone has been ringing off the hook for the last two weeks from my Wellcare and Coventry clients. They have all received their termination letters. I'm also getting a lot of calls from my Todays Options clients because of the huge premium increases and benefit cuts.

I'm not doing MA's or PDP's anymore, so, I've been keeping another agant busier than he ever imagined with referrals. I have already moved some to med sups and made then effective for Jan. 1, 2010.