On November 12, PIA sent a letter to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz urging the agency to address concerning trends in the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D markets that threaten consumer access, undermine market integrity, and marginalize the role of licensed insurance agents. Take action here to make your …
Continue reading Take Action: PIA urges CMS Action to Address Emerging Medicare Practices
The largest Medicare Part D (prescription drug) carrier recently announced its intent to eliminate independent agent commissions associated with Medicare Part D sales and renewals in 2025. These plans will also remove agents as the “agent of record” when they assist clients with the enrollment process. This decision jeopardizes seniors’ access to the expert guidance …
Continue reading Medicare Part D Plans to Eliminate Agent Commissions in 2025
In the latest entry in our Commissioner Spotlight series, we are focusing on the head of the Puerto Rico Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner Alexander S. Adams Vega. Commissioner Adams has been serving in the Puerto Rico Office of the Commissioner of Insurance for more than 10 years, first as a legal adviser and …
Continue reading Commissioner Spotlight: Puerto Rico Commissioner Alexander S. Adams Vega
Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) last week introduced S. 5149, a bill to remove agents from a definition that would result in burdensome requirements for agents enrolling consumers into Medicare. PIA supports this legislation. The bill seeks to reverse the harmful Medicare rule that could discourage licensed agents and brokers from representing Medicare Advantage and Part …
Continue reading Bill Introduced to Remove Agents from Burdensome Medicare Rule
Now that the midterm election results are in, and the majority parties of both the Senate and House for the next Congress are known, Congress has returned for a lame-duck session with a long to-do list before the 117th Congress ends on January 3, 2023. PIA is engaged with Congress on several issues in …
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently finalized its updated Medicare Program: Contract Year 2023 Policy and Technical Changes to the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Programs. The rule made significant changes to existing marketing requirements for both Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D plans. PIA, along with other agent groups, …
PIA, along with other agent groups, including the National Association of Health Underwriters, sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in response to its “Medicare Program: Contract Year 2023 Policy and Technical Changes to the Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Programs,” which was finalized in May. The rule …
Recently the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) held its Spring National Meeting in the city in which it is headquartered: Kansas City, Missouri. PIA was represented at both the Board of Directors meeting of the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR) and elsewhere during the NAIC meeting. During the NIPR meeting, the Board took advantage …
The “No Surprises” Act was passed as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2021 last year, and it was meant to reduce the effect and frequency of surprise medical bills on people with health insurance. No Surprises targets a variety of billing issues, including the direct and indirect compensation of agents/brokers involved in the …
Continue reading No Surprises Act: Disclosure Requirement Update
Medical insurance claim form with stethoscope and surgical face mask. There are also other pieces of paperwork on the desk, including a patient form. The No Surprises Act, which was passed as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2021, was designed to reduce the effect and frequency of surprise medical bills on health …
Continue reading Regulatory Requirements for Agents in “No Surprises”
