Went to Health Plan Finder Meeting.

[medsuptage]

I went to one of the first hosted exchange meetings required in Washington to offer plans through the exchange. If any of you haven't made it to that meeting yet, it was rather eye opening.

The exchange site looks to be really agent friendly, but it looks too agent friendly in my opinion. The application can be filled out 100% on the agent side with no applicant verification, that includes all the health, background, and financial questions too. You as an agent can go into the exchange site and change any applicant to instantly become "your client". What is really unusual is this also requires no applicant verification. This could be good if you help someone and they enroll with out you, you can make them your client. However I can see this feature being heavily abused. The way it was pitched to us, is you can just talk to random people in the grocery store and if they don't have an agent, you can go make them your client and receive commission. On the mischievous side, you could just search people in the phone book and change them to make them your client and receive commissions. Both of these features are really scary. It's all based on the "honor system" I feel like there's going to be a lot of lawsuits and E&O claims all over the place with this system. I can't help but wonder if they gave us agents this much power/control to shift the liability from the exchange and onto us agents.

One of the coordinators said two companies have released comp information too, at $17.00 PMPM. I'm not yet convinced that a policy that pays $200 commission is worth this kind of liability.

 

[benwrigh]

You as an agent can go into the exchange site and change any applicant to instantly become "your client". What is really unusual is this also requires no applicant verification.

Wow. Not sure how they did not think about the problems that could cause. How hard would it have been to have the applicant choose a PIN upon registering that they would need to give to the agent for verification?

 

[NWBenefitProvider]

I went to one of the first hosted exchange meetings required in Washington to offer plans through the exchange. If any of you haven't made it to that meeting yet, it was rather eye opening.

The exchange site looks to be really agent friendly, but it looks too agent friendly in my opinion. The application can be filled out 100% on the agent side with no applicant verification, that includes all the health, background, and financial questions too. You as an agent can go into the exchange site and change any applicant to instantly become "your client". What is really unusual is this also requires no applicant verification. This could be good if you help someone and they enroll with out you, you can make them your client. However I can see this feature being heavily abused. The way it was pitched to us, is you can just talk to random people in the grocery store and if they don't have an agent, you can go make them your client and receive commission. On the mischievous side, you could just search people in the phone book and change them to make them your client and receive commissions. Both of these features are really scary. It's all based on the "honor system" I feel like there's going to be a lot of lawsuits and E&O claims all over the place with this system. I can't help but wonder if they gave us agents this much power/control to shift the liability from the exchange and onto us agents.

One of the coordinators said two companies have released comp information too, at $17.00 PMPM. I'm not yet convinced that a policy that pays $200 commission is worth this kind of liability.

Actually, there is a verification step that will keep this from happening. Before you are able to enroll an individual the site will ask 2 security questions which are generated by the Experian system. You will actually need the person present or on the phone so that you could enter the answers after they give them to you.

A lot of people at the meeting misunderstood and thought along the lines you are thinking.

However, I'm with you on the liability issue, since even if they provide us with the security questions and enroll, what happens if they end up in the subsidy clawback situation? Then we are easy targets due to the E&O.

 

[medsuptage]

Actually, there is a verification step that will keep this from happening. Before you are able to enroll an individual the site will ask 2 security questions which are generated by the Experian system. You will actually need the person present or on the phone so that you could enter the answers after they give them to you.

A lot of people at the meeting misunderstood and thought along the lines you are thinking.

However, I'm with you on the liability issue, since even if they provide us with the security questions and enroll, what happens if they end up in the subsidy clawback situation? Then we are easy targets due to the E&O.

I don't remember them saying anything like that regarding the security questions, but that doesn't mean they didn't. There was a lot of improvising and it was clear that there was a lot of things still up in the air when they presented, I went to the second meeting they put on. That is good to know though. It does sound like a useless security measure if the client doesn't get to review anything on the application

 

[NWBenefitProvider]

Agreed. This wholke thing is quite the mess. I was at the meeting the day that they were supposed to approve the plans and in the end, none of the plans were certified. Hard to advise our clients without known plans.

 

[medsuptage]

Agreed. This wholke thing is quite the mess. I was at the meeting the day that they were supposed to approve the plans and in the end, none of the plans were certified. Hard to advise our clients without known plans.

You were in the same meeting as me then, at the Hilton by the airport. I guess we go back to hurry up and wait then

 

[Yagents]

2 more health insurers get exchange approval | Politics | The News Tribune

 

[insurance404]

I was at the same meeting you were, lol.

One thing I remember them mentioning is that you need their SSN and a few verification questions to make them your client...so kinda hard to get their SSN without their knowledge.

P.S. At least here in WA it will be much better than other states!

Commissions with LifeWise are $17/mo and Regence are $12/mo. Seems okay with me since I average 2 new clients per business day.

 

[medsuptage]

I was at the same meeting you were, lol.

One thing I remember them mentioning is that you need their SSN and a few verification questions to make them your client...so kinda hard to get their SSN without their knowledge.

This was not a part of what they showed me. What they showed me was a page where I can simply look up anyone by name and make them my client, no SS required or questions. There was only a verification page with a check box for the agent. I guess I could be remembering incorrectly but I don't recall anything like that.