DOGE Aides Search CMS Systems for Fraud

[InsuranceGuy29]

Before I became an agent I volunteered at SHIP. Cutting that will be stabbing agents in the knee cap. Much of what I dealt with then was basic information, educating people about rules, what different types of "programs" there were and differences between them, deadlines, things they needed to think though before they made a decision. If agents had that added to their work load we'd be spending far more time than we do now with very basic education. Yes clients still ask us some of those questions but you'd get far more of them doing that and asking more questions than they already do. There is a place for SHIP. Not everyone uses them - far from that - but what they do is important and does take a load off of agents.

Education on basic medicare can be obtained with a 7 minute video on the internet. This education is any standard part of an agent's presentation for supplemental policies anyway. What people really need help with (on an ongoing basis) are the supplemental policies.

Even more than the money, the main issue I have with them is they are always on forums (especially commieville reddit) telling people not go to independent agents, because God forbid "Daddy government" doesn't control absolutely everything.

Many state exchanges with government workers are like this. The far left government navigators of my state were asking my Medicare clients if they "reeeeeeally wanted a private Medicare policy????" They were trying to scare them away from it.

Many of these people are extremist far left radical political ideologues, and they simply hate the existence of insurance agents. Insurance agents who help these people FAAAAAR more than SHIP volunteers or navigators do.

 

[toolbelt]

Many of these people are extremist far left radical political ideologues,

and are probably black or Hispanic, and non-Christian, and likely speak with an accent and eat dogs and cats?

 

[annon123]

Education on basic medicare can be obtained with a 7 minute video on the internet. This education is any standard part of an agent's presentation for supplemental policies anyway. What people really need help with (on an ongoing basis) are the supplemental policies.

Even more than the money, the main issue I have with them is they are always on forums (especially commieville reddit) telling people not go to independent agents, because God forbid "Daddy government" doesn't control absolutely everything.

Many state exchanges with government workers are like this. The far left government navigators of my state were asking my Medicare clients if they "reeeeeeally wanted a private Medicare policy????" They were trying to scare them away from it.

Many of these people are extremist far left radical political ideologues, and they simply hate the existence of insurance agents. Insurance agents who help these people FAAAAAR more than SHIP volunteers or navigators do.

That there is a 7 minute video on the internet doesn't mean people will find it on their own. And if they do likely they will still have questions. I am not stating that SHIP replaces agents, rather those (and it certainly isn't even close to all or even close to a majority) who use SHIP can come to agents better educated which can save a lot of time.

At least in where I volunteered for SHIP we did a lot of basic education, answered questions, ran them through medicare.gov to see options and help them not be overwhelmed by how many choices show up there, helped them narrow down what they were interested in based on their priorities, pointed out pros and cons of options without directing them/pushing them in one direction or another, etc.

And yes, some of the people we helped chose to sign up without using an agent, but many then went to agents to sign up feeling like they were better equipped to ultimately make a choice that fit their needs and wanting the longer term added support using an agent would give them. Many found talking with SHIP and then moving forward from there helped them feel significantly less anxiety over the choices they needed to make. Agents who ended up with clients who used SHIP are, in my opinion, likely to have to do less hand holding and likely find the entire process with those clients takes less time because some of the basic education and answering many basic questions people have after being educated has already been done before they walk through our (agent) door.

I don't see a lot of people advertising they are with SHIP on forums I am on answering questions. I do see some people (and whether or not any of them are with SHIP I can't tell as SHIP is generally not mentioned in the context of agents, rather it is mentioned as a source they can use to get more information) argue that you can do this all yourself without an agent - which is true. But doing it without an agent is not a good fit for all people either and many know they want more guidance than they 'd get just with SHIP and then doing things on their own. Some folks need more hand holding than others. Some people are less able to find credible information on their own than others. Some want support after they have signed up as they don't want to have to deal with any issues on their own...

At least the branch of the SHIP I volunteered at was neutral about the use of agents and gave using agents as an option that might meet their needs (as we talked about the kinds of support they wanted, etc.). As a result I see a place for SHIP that both supports agent use and independent sign ups. I think it fills an important need (although it is clear from forums that many had not heard of SHIP). The fact that, at least with the branch I volunteered for, we always had a full schedule this clearly we were filling a need that at least some people had.

 

[Medicare bro]

Education on basic medicare can be obtained with a 7 minute video on the internet. This education is any standard part of an agent's presentation for supplemental policies anyway. What people really need help with (on an ongoing basis) are the supplemental policies.

Even more than the money, the main issue I have with them is they are always on forums (especially commieville reddit) telling people not go to independent agents, because God forbid "Daddy government" doesn't control absolutely everything.

Many state exchanges with government workers are like this. The far left government navigators of my state were asking my Medicare clients if they "reeeeeeally wanted a private Medicare policy????" They were trying to scare them away from it.

Many of these people are extremist far left radical political ideologues, and they simply hate the existence of insurance agents. Insurance agents who help these people FAAAAAR more than SHIP volunteers or navigators do.

I agree with what you are saying. When we sell an advantage product agents are basically an extension of the federal government. We are sued o contractors for them.

 

[Allen Trent]

I mean does 80 yr old gma and beepa really need that chlamydia test every time he or she goes to ER.

You obviously never been to the Villages or Mar A Lago.

 

[somarco]

I rarely run into folks who have talked to SHIP volunteers . . . but in the past, the information the prospect shared with me made it seem as if the SHIP they talked with had a fairly good understanding about Medicare but were clueless when it came to discussing Medicare insurance products.

On more than one occasion the SHIP allegedly told the senior that Medigap plans (with the same letter) are all the same . . . just pick the one with the lowest premium.

If that is true, it tells me that SHIPS are not helping matters.

 

[rmhaire]

You obviously never been to the Villages or Mar A Lago.

How did you get the clap at Mar A Lago?

 

[annon123]

I rarely run into folks who have talked to SHIP volunteers . . . but in the past, the information the prospect shared with me made it seem as if the SHIP they talked with had a fairly good understanding about Medicare but were clueless when it came to discussing Medicare insurance products.

On more than one occasion the SHIP allegedly told the senior that Medigap plans (with the same letter) are all the same . . . just pick the one with the lowest premium.

If that is true, it tells me that SHIPS are not helping matters.

That may be true in other offices. I can't speak to that. In the one I volunteered in the training we had included insurance products OM, supp, D, MAD, MAPD, HMO, PPO, differences in risk pools, networks, MOOP... Did clients understand all that - well that varied in my personal experience.

We were told NOT to recommend specific products (or insurance companies) like OM, MAP's, supps, etc.rather lay out the pros and cons. I have no clue if we were given training above and beyond what was usually given, but the director was pretty involved in what we did and how we did it.

We were told to tell them they can sign up online/over the phone with the companies or with agents, that signing up in any of those ways was free to them. We told them some agents worked with more insurance companies than others, often didn't write for all the companies they could see on medicare.gov, and if they decided they had a preference then to be sure the agent they worked with wrote for that company. Specific questions about specific products were best answered by the company offering the product or agents.

Again I have no idea if our office director went above and beyond the usual training of SHIP volunteers (of which a lot of it was via modules someone, not our director, had prepared and standardized, some was not). In my opinion SHIP volunteers need to be able to talk about the range of medicare products available, financial aid available to pay for premiums and where to sign up, duel eligible issues, etc. We had that training. Base on what several of you have said, maybe what went on here was 'above and beyond' vs they were trained and didn't do it? I have no clue.

 

[Allen Trent]

How did you get the clap at Mar A Lago?

It was "stormy" when I visited, I think it got transferred via air droplets or being in the pool.

 

[toolbelt]

It was "stormy" when I visited, I think it got transferred via air droplets or being in the pool.

Shoulda worn a mask.