DALLAS ASSOCIATION OF HEALTH UNDERWRITERS NEWSLETTER

Transcription

1 DALLAS ASSOCIATION OF HEALTH UNDERWRITERS NEWSLETTER December 2017 December 2017 Another Brick in the Wall Gone The lyric from Pink Floyd s, The Wall, refers to barriers; social, ethical, legislative, financial, you name it. On December 20, 2017 the Trump administration pulled one of the Key Stone bricks out of President Obama s legacy Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Individual Mandate Penalty, and a big barrier to our industry is about to fall. Main stream media railed about market instability and 13 Million people would lose health coverage mostly NOT TRUE 13 Million people will not lose health coverage. They will stop buying medical insurance they didn t want, was overpriced, and that didn t work for them. There will certainly be instability for the Federally-Facilitated Marketplace, aka: Exchange, aka: Obama Care, and rightfully so. The Free Market never created the plans mandated by the ACA. There was never a consumer demand, with exception to those with pre-existing conditions or those who could not afford insurance. In 1994 the Congressional Budget Office and AHIP estimated this segment to be 11 million people, and not the 44 million touted by the Clinton Administration. In this issue: Newsletter Sponsor Spotlight Kemper Insurance Burn-Out, Disease, Running, Confidence and Hope January Monthly Meeting DAHU Symposium and Technology Fair Benefits Account Manager Certification Course New Members Despite the number used, what will happen to the newly un-insured? The young and bullet-proof population having no rationalization of mortality or morbidity will do without as they did before the ACA. The population that can t afford it will use premium subsidies offered on the Exchange until every carrier withdraws from participation due to declining enrollment numbers and increased utilization of FREE healthcare. On the positive side Those insurance carriers, still committed to the health insurance market place, can now offer more affordable, underwritten plans that are more affordable with larger PPO networks with greater network access. Even reimbursement for non-network providers! Maybe they will even incorporate market driven approaches like Value Based or Evidence Based healthcare. Last month I wrote about things changing, but things stay the same. The changes before us are already creating opportunities in our market and the companies that serve it will adjust to the changing demand. Things (products, laws, environments) change. The constant is demand, and your clients will demand new things. Be there to serve their needs and you ll be drinking the lemonade I spoke of last month too. Happy New Year! Thank you, Jay A. Huminsky, RHU, REBC President, Dallas Association of Health Underwriters 1

2 KEMPER EDGE UPDATE: Accident Expense Kemper Benefits sole focus is voluntary benefits. Our flexible portfolio allows us to customize benefit packages for your clients by integrating with existing healthcare strategies and mitigating their employees financial exposure. We foster relationships and make business easy for you. Accident insurance is one of the most popular products in the voluntary market because of its high appeal. There are two types of accident insurance: the familiar, traditional indemnity products and the newer accident expense products. While the benefit payment methods differ, both can help take the financial sting out of unanticipated medical expenses. Accident indemnity insurance is common in the broker community. This type of accident product typically uses a set schedule of benefit amounts. For example, an employee with a finger laceration requiring stitches would receive a predetermined benefit amount of $75, while a dislocated shoulder would receive $400. A hospitalization could be eligible for a set daily indemnity benefit amount. Receiving the lump-sum per qualified accidental injury is unrelated to actual medical charges, and paid on a set lump-sum schedule. Kemper Benefits strategies are designed to integrate with an employer s existing benefit strategy and health plans to minimize the workforce s exposure to deductibles, copays and out-of-pocket medical expenses. Our product portfolio includes: Accident, Critical Illness, Life, Disability, Cancer, Hospital Indemnity, Gap, Limited Medical, Vision and Dental. For an Accident Expense Brochure or Additional Information regarding Kemper Benefits, please contact: Suzanne Crim, Account Manager: OR Lee Berdon, Territory Sales Manager:

3 Burn-Out, Disease, Running, Confidence and Hope. It s hard for any of us in Mid-December to not think we ve been hit with a touch of burn-out. It s like catching the flu or pneumonia, but for insurance professionals. And like those 2 diseases, we go through some sort of trauma but often we recover and we build some immunity to those diseases if even for just a short time period. For me, running is not something that I look forward to with the same fervor as playing baseball or racing my tiny blue cars. Running is Trauma. But, running teaches me lessons about ability, progression, and the rewards of perseverance. Every time I can add 5 more minutes on to the end of a run or adding another half-mile to my ability to keep going without stopping, collapsing, and saying less than generous words about my future existence in this world all while trying to make sure I can still breathe, walk and maintain a healthy distance between my head and the ground in front of me is a victory I can cherish. Going to that next level or milestone gives me extreme confidence when setting out for the next run. That confidence is really the same thing in sales. It is really that same thing in leadership. It is really that same thing in life. That confidence is the experience of surviving the trauma and being victorious on the other side. From our sales-goal, we look at our last ditch shot to achieve our agency s expectations of us as the running trauma we must survive in 4th quarter. From our operational goals, we look at the final revenue projections and the year-end profitability ledger as the running trauma we must survive in 4th quarter. From our leadership goals, we look at our team s ability keep one foot in front of the other in such a manner they don t find themselves faceplanted in the pavement ahead as the running trauma we must survive in 4th quarter. Did you survive the trauma you experienced in these goals for 2013? 2014? 2015? 2016? 2017? Yes, you survived the trauma and in just a few days you will feel better. You have shaken the flu-like systems and you are whole again. You know that your physical body has survived and now your professional self has survived too. Let s agree then that the insurance burn-out is a myth, it s just temporary and that you come out the other side with greater confidence and an idea of how to train & prepare better for the next run or the next bought of the disease will be a much different year for this group, as we all see the terrain ahead of us as something different than we ve traveled before. But it doesn t matter, we just gained the confidence of recovering from the trauma. Let s commit to convene for 2018 all knowing that our legs may be a little weak from this current run, but that we are better prepared for what lies ahead. -Bret 3

4 Thanks. Giving. My 2 favorite words in the English dictionary. On behalf of the DAHU Board, THANKS to the 7 members that participated in our Annual Fall Membership Campaign. Each were successful in recruiting 1 new member to our chapter during the Campaign. Special thanks and recognition to the following members: Eva Marie Boucher Lee Speir Suzanne Crim Doris Waller Steven Neuner David Weber Jay Huminsky Tis the season for GIVING. In appreciation for their successful recruiting, each member will receive a $25 Lunch Voucher. A warm welcome goes out to our 7 newest DAHU members! Welcome!!! Charles Foust Chase Whitmore Nigel Ingham Alisha Angleman Traci Clay Debra Brenner Howard Hanger 4

5 Ethics: The NAHU Way (CE #3101) Join NAHU President Elect Rusty Rice, SGS for your two hours of required ethics CE. You will actually enjoy his presentation! Rusty entered the insurance industry in 1993 after a 12-year career in the grocery industry. He has been a member of NAHU since 1998 and in that time, he has been a local President, a state President and is currently the national President Elect. In addition, he's won multiple awards, including the San Antonio Underwriter of the Year, the Dave Clark Lifetime Achievement Award and the Hollis Roberson Award, among others. As a Regional Vice President of Sales for Avesis Incorporated, Rusty oversees operations in vision, dental and hearing markets throughout Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. In addition, he has taught over 100 hours of health care reform CE to association chapters, employer groups, their clients and the general public. Having been at the forefront of NAHU leadership at every level, Rusty knows what it takes to lead "the NAHU way!" January 17th, :15 AM - 2:00 PM The Clubs of Prestonwood Preston Road Dallas, TX Benefits Account Manager Certification Course The role of account manager has become increasingly important; it is the account manager who primarily keeps the processes moving forward through the service provided to clients. Account managers have taken on many more of the duties that were traditionally reserved for producers and are critical in compliance efforts. The new NAHU training ensures professional success for the account manager and gives peace of mind to the producer that clients will be taken care of professionally and skillfully. The purpose of the Benefits Account Manager Certification course is to provide account manager professionals with an understanding of the complex and critical role an account manager plays in the health and benefits arena. The training will provide instruction to ensure that students understand the key technical components of benefit plans and are better prepared to counsel their clients on the various products as well as key instruction to assist them in client compliance. A multi-topic curriculum, accompanied by case studies and a study guide will be used as a learning tool to help students prepare for their final exam. Click here for more information, including course delivery, cost and continuing education credits. 5

6 Join DAHU for our second annual Symposium & Technology Fair in the Grand Ballroom at Irving Convention Center (parking is free!). This local event is fast becoming one of the premier industry events of the year for health insurance agents! Registration will be all-inclusive, but hurry, it is limited to the first 350 attendees and 60 vendors. Breakfast, lunch and two happy hour drink tickets 4 CE hours from the below nationally recognized speakers Vendors you haven't seen before that can increase your productivity $500 prize drawing Membership discounts for attendees March 20, 2018 Annual Symposium & Technology Fair 8:00 AM - 6:30 PM Irving Convention Center at Las Colinas 500 West Las Colinas Boulevard Irving, TX $60.00 Member All-Inclusive $40.00 Earlybird rate before January 16 $80.00 Non-Member All-Inclusive $60.00 Earlybird rate before January 16 Register Now Dallas Association of Health Underwriters Newsletter Vol. 3 No. 12 Editor: jennaw@cxcnetwork.com 6