10 Unexpected Benefits of Using EDE

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Enhanced Direct Enrollment gives you the tools you need to offer ACA insurance shoppers a more seamless, customer-centric experience

It’s been an exceptional year so far for Federal Marketplace-sanctioned health insurance sales. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reports that an estimated 14+ million people enrolled in on-exchange plans during the recently ended Open Enrollment Period (OEP) 2022.

Marketplace leaders say the record-setting upswing is tantamount to a 20% jump in growth compared to last year alone. Though final calculations and market analysis aren’t yet written in stone, driving factors behind the double-digit surge appear to be:

• Reduced premiums
• Additional consumer subsidies and incentives
• An improved selection of coverage offerings
• Insurance seekers who have lost job-related healthcare within a year or more.

And that’s not to mention a protracted Pandemic that seems to have helped spur a renewed consumer interest in quality health care, both for individuals and families.

Shoppers who missed the Jan. 15 OEP deadline may still have an opportunity to enroll in new on-exchange health plans throughout the year, however. That is, provided they meet certain special enrollment criteria, such as getting married, job loss, or having children.

For insurance brokers and agents, this potential opportunity for additional new business is balanced by the need to keep the sometimes challenging Affordable Care Act (ACA) enrollment process as pain-free as possible.

The best way to do that is by working with an Enhanced Direct Enrollment (EDE)-friendly partner like Quotit. 

By definition, Enhanced Direct Enrollment is a health insurance pathway developed by the CMS. The integration enables consumers to buy ACA-compliant health insurance plans through federal exchanges from their own agent or broker instead of purchasing directly from the Marketplace.

By partnering with a certified platform provider such as Quotit, agencies and brokerages can seamlessly connect to HealthCare.gov, which will then determine a consumer’s eligibility for exchange-based insurance.

Upgrade Your Customer Experience

More than anything, using EDE will help enrich your customer relationships.

With EDE’s capabilities, you can offer over and under-65 prospects and clients a higher-converting application and enrollment experience that leverages your own website and digital resources. EDE’s feature set puts you in the driver’s seat, empowering you to enroll, support, and update your insurance clients’ accounts year-round with ease.

The advantages of being hands-on with your client accounts has obvious benefits — but these aren’t the only ways EDE can help up-level your on-exchange sales game. Consider these 10 benefits that you might not have thought of! 

Using EDE can also help provide:

1. 1. A friction-free user experience during the application and enrollment process that begins and ends on your own branded website, and doesn’t require your clients to shuffle from one URL to the next.
      
      
   2. Clear, concise plan information that helps healthcare shoppers consider the coverage options that best suit their needs and life circumstances.
      
      
   3. A simplified quoting process that allows you to show prospects and customers different plan options side-by-side, helping them make more informed healthcare decisions.
      
      
   4. A clear snapshot of the premiums for all available plans with the financial subsidy already calculated for easy comparison.
      
      
   5. Access to comprehensive directories, so healthcare shoppers know up-front if their doctors and pharmacies are covered in their available networks.
      
      
   6. An easy-to-navigate pathway for pulling your customers’ current Marketplace application status on the Healthcare.gov website.
      
      
   7. The mutual convenience of assisting customers remotely, over a video conference or a phone call.
      
      
   8. The click-of-a-button capability to securely upload your customers’ important verification documentation, such as proof of income and citizenship status.
      
      
   9. A secure gateway to make initial binder payments on new policies.
      
      
   10. 24/7 access for you or your customers to update their application if they become eligible for a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) triggered by qualifying life events, including marriage, job loss, or adopting a child.
       
       

The good news is, EDE is a free service with Quotit, and customers are automatically opted in. If you’re an existing Quotit client but haven’t yet used EDE, please reach out to our customer care team today!

If you’re not already a customer, of course, maybe it’s time to find out what you’ve been missing. Connect with us today and request a demo!