The annual enrollment period is just around the next corner. When you are preparing in advance for Medicare sales meetings, it’s crucial to stay CMS fully compliant for all of your events; including in-person sales meetings. We’ve created the following list of 6 things you shouldn’t discuss in your Medicare consultations for a good start.
1. “I am a Medicare agent.”
One of the primary rules that all Independent Insurance Agents must know is that you cannot claim to be a part of Medicare or be approved by Medicare/CMS anyway. This must be clearly stated to the beneficiary. Also on all marketing material such as your website or business cards.
2. “Free premiums in Medicare!”
In the context of Medicare selling, you should not use the term “free.”
It should not be an element of your vocabulary. While some Medicare plans might have zero copays and premiums; they typically are specific to certain areas and plans and aren’t completely free. However, these plans may have costs for coinsurance, deductibles, and other requirements for network participation. The use of the term “free” can be absurdly false and is deemed to be a prohibited term by CMS; as stated in the Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines handbook. Moreover, to stay CMS conforming, use terms like “zero dollar premium” and “reduced deductible.”
3. “If you like this Medicare plan, you should check this life insurance plan.”
At the Medicare consultations, you can’t sell non-health-related products like life insurance, annuities, and other things that aren’t related to health.
4. “You need this Medicare plan, it’s the best you can get, and it will cover all your needs.”
A client who is misled into signing to a particular Medicare plan isn’t only an ineffective sales technique and is not CMS conforming. Making a plan appear all-inclusive or using language such as “best” can be extremely perplexing for a newly-enrolled Medicare beneficiary. So, education is the best option for secure and reliable Medicare sales.
5. “If you are keen on signing up for Medicare, I can take your payment info over the phone.”
Requesting payment via phone or online is illicit. Moreover, accepting and asking for money over the phone or any online method is against the law. So, every plan must send an invoice to the beneficiary’s address.
6. “Do you know anyone else keen on Medicare? I’ll contact them.”
You might be thinking, “how can I get referrals if I’m not allowed to ask?” The answer is, first of all, asking for referrals is fine, but the details you request when the law comes into the picture. Requesting a phone number is not an excellent way to market Medicare. Instead, you could ask the client to reference your name to other people. Or you can also adhere to the tried and tested method of giving the business card out.
