December 15, 2015: Marketplace Open Enrollment First Deadline

Next Tuesday, December 15, 2015 is the last day for consumers to enroll in or change plans for new coverage to start on January 1, 2016. As the deadline approaches, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expects heavier-than-normal traffic at the Marketplace Call Center and at HealthCare.gov. To help make sure that your clients are able to submit their applications on time, CMS offers the following suggestions to help you and your clients navigate the Health Insurance Marketplace:

·         Reduce your wait time when contacting the Marketplace Call Center by avoiding calling during the following peak periods:

o    9:00 AM to 12:00 PM Eastern Time (ET)

o    4:00 PM to 6:00 PM ET

o    December 13 to 15, 2015

·         Please hold off on contacting the Marketplace Call Center for questions and changes that can wait until after December 15, 2015.

 

CMS provides the following resources to help you and your clients throughout Open Enrollment:

·         The Agent and Broker Call Center can answer questions about Federally-facilitated Marketplace (FFM) agent and broker registration and training, National Producer Numbers (NPNs), password resets and account lockouts on the CMS Enterprise Portal, login issues at the HealthCare.gov landing page, HealthCare.gov website issues, and policy questions related to the Individual or Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplaces. Call 855-267-1515 and select option “1,” Monday through Saturday from 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM ET through December and January.

o    You may also send an email to FFMProducer-AssisterHelpDesk@cms.hhs.gov with these types of questions.

·         The Marketplace Call Center can answer specific questions or issues with a consumer’s Individual Marketplace application. The Marketplace Call Center is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-318-2596.

o    Remember that you must either have a current authorization in your client’s file to access his or her information, or your client must provide such an authorization to this call center by phone.

·         The SHOP Marketplace Call Center can answer questions about SHOP Marketplace coverage at 1‑800-706-7893, Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM ET.

·         The Agents and Brokers Resources webpage also contains resources you can use to assist clients in selecting and enrolling in coverage through the Individual Marketplace, and to help employers and employees obtain coverage through the SHOP Marketplace.

 

CMS appreciates your assistance in helping your clients make the best use of Marketplace resources to get enrolled in coverage for plan year 2016.