If you haven't heard about the 2026 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed rule, buckle up.
If this proposal is adopted and implemented as is, it could shake the foundation of how independent insurance agents like you operate — and, ultimately, how seniors access your trusted guidance.
As an insurance agent, you're likely wondering, "What now?"
Let's take a few minutes to unpack the proposed rule, its implications, and why it's causing so much concern.
What's the proposed rule about?
First things first: CMS wants to implement a system where every single piece of communication from agents must be reviewed and approved by Medicare and all insurance carriers they are contracted with for each Medicare product they are marketing or could quote, before being shared.
Yep, you read that right.
This applies to:
- Business cards.
- Flyers.
- Social media posts.
- Signs.
- Postcards.
- Letters to both prospective and current clients.
Now, stop and imagine for a moment while you consider what this could mean for your business.
If this rule is implemented, even a harmless social media post like "I help people with Medicare" would require jumping through all these proposed layers of approval, with each contracted carrier, for each product.
Does this feel fair?
If any of that bothers you, then ask yourself this: How often have you encountered misleading marketing practices among your peers?
Likely, not often.
The overwhelming majority of independent agents pride themselves on ethical practices and excellent client service, don't you?
Yet, CMS seems to believe the system is rife with abuse, prompting this sweeping proposal.
What is CMS pointing to as the justification? Complaints. Specifically, 38,000 complaints about Medicare marketing were filed in 2023.
I get it: At first glance, that may seem like a lot. But has anyone bothered to break those numbers down?
Are the numbers really that alarming?
CMS oversees Medicare for 67 million beneficiaries. Did you realize that. Out of those 67 million "clients" (who are also insurance agents' clients), only 38,000 complaints were filed.
That's not 1%, not a half of 1% and not even a tenth of 1% of the total. That's literally a complaint rate of just 0.05% — or five-tenths of 1%.
Stated another way, 99.95% of Medicare beneficiaries did not feel compelled to lodge a complaint.
OK, how about another perspective: Imagine running any business with a 99.95% satisfaction rate.
Would you expect to be accused of systemic abuse or face multi-million-dollar oversight initiatives? It's almost unthinkable, isn't it?
Yet, this is the scenario that independent agents — you — now face.
Who stands to lose the most?
So, what's the crux of the problem then? These proposals don't just inconvenience agents — they hurt seniors.
How? Think about it: If you are forced into bureaucratic approval cycles for every piece of communication, with every contracted carrier for each product you "might" quote, how quickly can you adapt to clients' needs?
