Broker Support

OEP: Do’s and Don’ts

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Are you ready for the Open Enrollment Period (OEP)?
OEP Cheat Sheet

When is OEP?      January 1 through March 31 each year.

Who is Eligible?

Individuals enrolled in an MA-Only or MAPD plan CAN:
  • use the OEP to switch to or get a different MAPD plan, an MA-only plan, or Original Medicare (with or without a PDP).

Individuals enrolled in Original Medicare CANNOT:
  • use the OEP to join an MA or MAPD plan, add a PDP, or change their PDP.
In addition, the OEP is not available to those enrolled in Medicare Savings
Accounts or other Medicare health plan types (such as cost plans or PACE).

Broker Do’s and Don’ts

Producers May NOT:
    • Send unsolicited materials advertising the ability/opportunity to make an additional enrollment change or referencing the OEP
    • Specifically target beneficiaries who are in the OEP because they made a choice during AEP, by purchase of mailing lists or other means of identification
    • Engage in or promote agent/broker activities that intend to target the OEP as an opportunity to make further sales
    • Call or otherwise contact former enrollees who have selected a new plan during the AEP
    • Use marketing pieces that highlight the OEP or the opportunity to change plans during the OEP
    • Make assumptions on which election period to use.
red x
green check

Producers May:
    • Educate consumers about the OEP if you are enrolling them into a plan, or they have reached out to you about their dissatisfaction with their current plan
    • At a beneficiary’s proactive request, send marketing materials, have one-on-one meetings, and provide information on the OEP
    • Market to age-ins (who have not yet made an enrollment decision)
    • Market to dual-eligible and low-income subsidy (LIS) beneficiaries who, in general, may make changes once per calendar quarter during the first nine months of the year

PRODUCERS MUST:

Determine if the consumer has a valid election period and which election
period is best for the consumer’s circumstances.

We hope you take advantage of this additional enrollment period happening in Q1 2020. Below are links to carrier information sheets to further clarify the do’s and don’ts you need to follow to ensure you remain compliant. Happy New Year!
What is OEP
Educational Flyer
OEP Job Aid
Listen to UHC's Podcast for more in depth information!

Contact Broker Support if you have any questions!
800-234-9488
GarityAdvantage Agencies

Meet Your Broker Support Liaison Team!

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Caryn Contois
Director of Broker Relations

Christina Comerford

Broker Support Liaison

Maggie Pollard

Broker Support Liaison

Cassandra Lamb

Broker Support Liaison

We are taking broker service to a whole new level!
 
GarityAdvantage is pleased to introduce our Broker Relations team, led by our support expert Caryn Contois. The goal of this newly formed team is to ensure we provide you with timely and consistent support at each and every point of contact while also freeing up our territory managers to focus on providing you with more training and tools to help you grow your business.
 
Now, when you call our office, you will be greeted by a dedicated service professional (a.k.a. ‘Broker Liaison’) who will work directly with you to answer your questions and/or resolve your issues quickly and, when possible, at this first point of contact. 
 
This approach has already shown great results by giving brokers immediate answers rather than waiting for a specific person or department to respond. Conversely, this new team has helped to take the pressure off our other departments so they too can get more done for you. 

Our Broker Liaisons Are Ready to Help YOU with:

  • Enrollment Questions
  • Commission Issues
  • Contracting/Certifications
  • Supply Ordering
  • Event Scheduling
  • Product and Market Questions
  • and Much, Much More…

Caryn Contois, Director of Broker Relations

Caryn Contois has over 15 years at GarityAdvantage under her belt, over half of those as the New Business Manager. She is excited to move into this new role and has many innovative ideas to implement that will streamline the service they bring to you. Expect a lot of fantastic improvements to come your way!
 
Caryn would argue that there’s no downtime during AEP, but when she does catch a break, she spends much of her free time with her close knit family including 6 nieces and nephews and her beloved American Bulldog, Ginger.
 
Something you may not know about Caryn:
She’s a trained pastry chef and once worked for Steven Tyler of Aerosmith!
 
Caryn’s Words to Live By: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things”
 
Caryn’s Secret Weapon: Problem Solving

Christina Comerford, Broker Support Liaison

Christina Comerford joined GarityAdvantage at our MA office in September, 2011. She began as a temp in the enrollment department, but we quickly realized we needed her exemplary service skills full-time! Originally from Holbrook, MA, Christina says it’s the type of small town where, “you can’t go to any convenient store, pizza shop, or gas station without seeing someone you grew up with.”
 
You Are the Most Rewarding Part of Her Job: “The most rewarding part about my job is the relationships and trust I have built with the agents I work with. I have been lucky enough to work with a diverse and pleasant group, and the positive feedback I receive from them is what makes my days a little bit brighter!”
 
Christina’s “free-time” is very busy raising young children with her husband. They love the beach and ocean in the summer and hunkering down with good books in the winter.
 
How Christina Defines Success: Success is achieving self set goals. This can take days, months, or years, but as long as you’re striving to be better than yesterday, every day can be a success in its own.

Maggie Pollard, Broker Support Liaison

Maggie Pollard joined GarityAdvantage at our CT Office in October, 2016. Any broker that has stepped through our CT doors has likely interacted with her positive attitude and upbeat way of tackling brokers’ day-to-day requests.
 
It’s no wonder that her definition of success is, “knowing that what you are doing is helping you and others lead a better, happier, healthier life.”
 
She also stays healthy in her free time by hiking and is looking forward to someday taking a road trip across the U.S.A.
 
Maggie’s Secret Weapon: Attention to Detail
 
Maggie’s Words to Live By: “Until you change your thinking, you will always recycle your experiences.”

Cassandra Lamb, Broker Support Liaison

Cassandra Lamb joined the GarityAdvantage at our CT Office in May, 2018, and originally hails from Bronx, NY.
 
Although Cassandra is relatively new to our team, she fit in immediately and has shown herself to be reliable and steady as a rock when we hit our busy seasons. She says she stays so even keeled because she “rarely takes work home” with her. Cassandra also says the most rewarding part of her job is, “being able to assist the agents with any and all needs.”
 
Most Interesting Job She’s Ever Had: “Most interesting was running a day care. You don’t know what you are made of until you have 30 screaming toddlers following you around!”
 
Cassandra’s Words to Live By: I woke up this morning, my kids are healthy and we have food. Anything outside of that doesn’t matter much. Be thankful.
Contact Broker Support via Our Website

or Call: 800-234-9488