Weekly News
November 8, 2019
Attention Valued Partner!
There are several items that we want to highlight this week:
The Real Cost of Stand-Alone PDP Plans:
- Members may not be aware of the total out of pocket costs vs. premiums when using the Find a Plan tool on medicare.gov.
- Medicare.gov has changed the way search results for stand-alone prescription drug plan costs are displayed by default. Instead of defaulting to Out of Pocket Costs, results are ranked by monthly premiums.
- Further, search results do not necessarily take into account Low Income Subsidy (Extra Help) or a $0 premium.
- These challenges could mislead members and cause higher total out of pocket costs.
- We recommend using the WellCare Find a Plan website, to get the most accurate information for our PDP plans.
Please, take the time to educate members and beneficiaries on the real costs of their stand-alone prescription drug plan selection.
Star Ratings now Available:
- We want to thank YOU, our partner, for helping continue to improve our star ratings, by providing quality support to your members.
- Our overall PY 2020 star rating is 3.54, which exceeds our targeted goal of 3.47.
- PY 2020 star ratings inserts have been released and are available for download in Agent Connect.
Hierarchy Changes Postponed During AEP:
- As a reminder, hierarchy changes requested between September 17th and December 8th are not processed until after the AEP period, on December 9th.
- Please note, agents under WellCare FMO can change hierarchies at any point throughout the year. Please contact your current hierarchy and/or your local District Sales Manager (DSM) if you have any questions.
Dual Eligible/LIS SEP Reminders:
- Beneficiaries that are dual eligible, or qualify for Low Income Subsidy (LIS), can enroll on a quarterly basis for the first three quarters of the year.
- In the fourth quarter, beneficiaries must use the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period to select a plan with an effective date of 1/1/2020.
- Quarterly elections CANNOT be rolled over to the following quarter if unused.
- Please, download the D-SNP SEP FAQ for further details on the quarterly dual SEP period.
WellCare Enrollment Platform - Update Reminder:
- Updates to the mobile app must be downloaded in order for agents to have access to both 2019 and 2020 enrollment forms.
- If you downloaded the app prior to 10/15 and have not updated it, please visit the Google Play Store, Apple App Store, or Windows Store to do so.
- Please, ensure that all pending 2019 SOA and/or enrollment applications are submitted prior to downloading the update. Any outstanding files will not carry over to the 2020 version.
Thank you for your continued partnership!
