working with agents and brokers to maximize in-person assistance

© 2015 Enroll America and Get Covered America EnrollAmerica.org | GetCoveredAmerica.org


06.12.15

Working with Agents and Brokers to Maximize In-Person Assistance


Agenda

I. Welcome Molly Warren (moderator), Senior Policy Analyst, Best Practices Institute, Enroll America

II. The Role of the Agent

Marcy Buckner, Vice President of Government Affairs, National Association of Health Underwriters

III. A Broker’s Perspective

Lee Nathans, President, Ohio Association of Health Underwriters

IV. Partnering on the Ground Mimi Garcia, Texas State Director, Enroll America

V. Q&A


In-Person Assistance Crucial to Enrollment

Consumers who received assistance were nearly 60% more likely to enroll compared to those who started the enrollment process online.


Lee S. Nathans, RHU, President, Ohio Association of Health Underwriters

A BROKER’S PERSPECTIVE

© 2015 Enroll America and Get Covered America EnrollAmerica.org | GetCoveredAmerica.org 5

•  Common objective is to build partnerships, which will reduce the number of uninsured.

•  “Help people be able to go to the doctor.”

WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER!


What do brokers do best?

•  Assist consumers in choosing the right plan to meet their specific medical and financial needs.

•  Make sure that each enrollment is good—sometimes it’s not easy with requests for authorizations, inquiries, etc.

•  Make it clear who they can see and what it will cost.


•  Make it clear how to use their RX benefits (formularies/copays).

•  Help with billing issues and terms.

•  Help with claims and explanations of benefits.

What do brokers do best?


•  Worked with many members of assister community before the ACA.

•  Following Kathleen Falk’s (Region V HHS Director) help, our association worked closely with the Navigator Grantee the Ohio Association of Food Banks.

•  State-wide work with brokers using appointment scheduler.

•  All interested brokers signed Enroll America’s Standards of Conduct.

Experience in Columbus, Ohio


•  Financially supported “Obamacare Jams,” a successful enrollment event with brokers and assistors at Columbus East High School.

Experience in Columbus, Ohio


•  Benefits to Assisters: •  Allies in getting more uninsured covered.

•  Benefits to Brokers: •  Resources to support enrollment, especially

hard to reach populations •  Ex: Vietnamese speakers


•  Commitment to work with EnrollAmerica at the local chapter level throughout Ohio.

•  THE KEY IS ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING ORGANIZATIONAL AND PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS!

Moving Forward


Lee S. Nathans, RHU President, Ohio Association of Health

Underwriters (614) 468-0334

[email protected]


PARTNERING ON THE GROUND: STRATEGIES FOR WORKING WITH

AGENTS AND BROKERS

Mimi Garcia, Texas State Director, Enroll America


Added Value in Partnering

Additional capacity to provide in-person

assistance

Access to particular constituencies

Additional resources or funding for resources


•  All sold plans from multiple insurers •  All completed HHS training and

certification to sell marketplace plans

•  All agreed to Enroll America’s assister pledge that outlines expectations for partners who provide in-person assistance

•  All willing to work hand in hand with other assister partners

Setting Standards for Partnership

When partnering with Enroll America, I pledge to abide by certain principles:

1.  To help all consumers seeking assistance apply for the appropriate health (and, if desired dental) coverage, whether they are eligible for marketplace coverage, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

2.  To be familiar with and equally willing to enroll consumers in all available marketplace plans, and always keep the consumers’ interests paramount when facilitating plan selection.

3.  To use only the official marketplace and Medicaid/CHIP application and websites for enrollment purposes.

4.  To provide my contact information and continue to be available to help those consumers I assisted with questions and issues with the coverage they purchased.

5.  To limit the assistance I provide to health and dental insurance. I will not advertise or discuss other products at the event, or solicit event attendees about other products at a later date. (Contacting consumers about health insurance related issues at a later date is acceptable.)

6.  To protect consumers’ privacy and confidentiality and abide by all applicable federal and state privacy and security requirements.

Failure to abide by these principles will result in the dissolution of the partnership.

Enroll America’s Pledge for Assisters


Florida: First Coast MultiLine Agency

•  Added crucial in-person assistance capacity in a region with only a handful of other assisters.

•  Particularly key to reaching the African-American faith-based network in the area.

•  Stepped up financially to make donated space at the Regency Square Mall a reality.

Examples of Partnerships


Texas: PennGlobal

•  Connected through our colleagues in Ohio

•  Particularly good with difficult applications – mixed status, complicated health needs, etc.

•  Able to do home visits and willing to travel to very rural areas. Much more flexibility

Example of Partnerships


Lessons Learned

Do your homework and establish ground rules

Start small, the structure of independent agents can be tough to coordinate, first

start with a group of brokers.

Agents and brokers partners were willing to work side by side with Navigators and

CACs

Agent and broker partners were well trained in customer service, and hard

workers!


Mimi Garcia Texas State Director

Enroll America [email protected]

512-202-7758

Thank You


QUESTIONS?


New training resources

•  Highly customized, Action-oriented •  New suite of training services

•  Goal-setting •  Planning •  Coaching •  In-person training

FOR MORE INFO –

[email protected]

working with agents and brokers to maximize in-person assistance

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