06/18/2025
Why use a licensed Medicare Insurance agent over SHIP? SERVICE & ACCURACY
In a recent study conducted by the Journal of American Medicine Association's "Open Network", out of 306 attempted shopper encounters, 40% couldn't be completed, mainly due to no return calls.
Among the 184 completed, only 40% of answers were accurate and complete. Accuracy varied widely by question type—from 26.1% for provider-network queries to 94.3% for Medicare plan differences.
Inaccurate responses were uncommon (6.7% on average). Less than half of counselors (44.8%) mentioned D-SNPs to shoppers posing as dual-eligible individuals.
This cross-sectional study describes experiences of mystery shoppers connecting with State Health Insurance Assistance Program counselors via telephone, in-person, and videoconference encounters, and it evaluates the accuracy and completeness of information provided by counselors in response to...