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Open enrollment lasts from November 1 to January 15 in most states. It provides an opportunity to review health plans, compare options, and consider upgrades.
For brokers, it’s a busy time of the year, as many clients might have questions or need help with purchasing a plan. While the focus is on health plans, open enrollment season is also a great opportunity to draw attention to these plans’ limitations and highlight the need for vision plans.
How Can Brokers Help During Open Enrollment Season?
The 2023 open enrollment season was a success, with over 21.4 million Americans shopping for plans on the marketplace.
Enrolling on the marketplace is meant to be a simple and straightforward experience, but brokers can still help:
- With many plans to compare, choosing the best one can be challenging.
- More Americans than ever have a health plan, but many are underinsured.
- Health costs can vary greatly from one plan to another. As a broker, helping people understand out-of-pocket expenses is important.
- Lastly, marketplace plans typically don’t include vision care for adults. Drawing attention to this is worthwhile.
Discussing Vision Plans
Discussing the limitations of the health plans available on the marketplace is an opportunity to introduce complementary products like vision plans to your clients. Here are some ways you can get started.
Educate Your Audience
Do your clients understand why they need a vision plan? It’s important to educate them about why a regular health plan isn’t enough. Talking about eye health risks and the benefits of regular eye exams as part of your marketing strategy is a great way to start.
Present Budget-Friendly Alternatives
Your clients just enrolled in a new health plan. It’s unlikely that they will be looking to make another major health-related purchase soon.
This is why budget-friendly options are important. With pre-paid vision plans, you can present an affordable option for supplementing their health plan and making vision care more accessible.
Give Specific Examples of Limits
Take a personalized approach and explain what the health plan your client selected will and won’t cover. For instance, a plan might cover a visit to the emergency room for an acute eye injury but won’t cover things like corrective lenses or LASIK surgery.
Vision Plans Contribute to Better Overall Health
Open enrollment is a time when clients think about their health needs. Listen to these needs and promote a personalized and holistic approach that will directly support client satisfaction.
By combining a health plan and a pre-paid vision plan, you can offer solutions that support better health and an improved quality of life. Eye exams are an essential element of this solution because they can help detect a wide range of health conditions in their early stages, including high blood pressure, diabetes and even some cancers.
Research also suggests that eye health is directly linked to mental health and healthy aging, two health-related concerns you can bring up while clients navigate the open enrollment period.
Explore Pre-Paid Vision Plans With VCD
Pre-paid vision plans are ideal for budget-conscious clients. With these plans, they can access negotiated savings when scheduling eye exams and receiving eye health services at their local optometrist. The monthly cost is very affordable, the pricing structure is transparent and savings are possible for a wide range of services.
Learn more about joining the VCD family as a broker and offering excellent pre-paid vision plans to your clients!
Summary: Brokers, open enrollment season is an ideal opportunity to review health needs with your clients. Here’s why it’s also the perfect time to introduce pre-paid vision plans.
