Medicare Sales Bill Scraps 48-Hour Waiting Period, Cracks Down on Call Center Scams

The “Independent BROKERS TIME Act of 2025” is basically a regulatory cleanup job for how Medicare Advantage (Part C) and Prescription Drug Plans (Part D) are sold, with a few major real-world effects baked in. At its core, the bill mandates the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to start several new rulemaking processes to clarify who is selling you Medicare plans and how they are allowed to do it.

The Great Agent vs. Call Center Divide

The biggest administrative push in this legislation is forcing HHS to draw a clear line between independent agents/brokers and what are called “Third-Party Marketing Organizations” (TPMOs). Think of independent agents as the local person you meet at the library or coffee shop who works with multiple carriers. TPMOs often operate large call centers, sometimes overseas, and specialize in generating sales leads. The bill requires HHS to define TPMOs based on specific criteria, like whether they use call centers outside the continental U.S., are financed by private equity, or make most of their money from selling leads. Crucially, the bill demands that any lead generation done by these TPMOs must meet the same strict compliance standards that licensed insurance agents have to follow. This means the rules for the person selling the plan should match the rules for the people generating the initial interest, which is a big deal for accountability in the industry.

Speeding Up the Sale: The 48-Hour Wait Is Gone

For most people, the most immediate change is found in Section 3, which eliminates the mandatory 48-hour waiting period. Currently, when an independent agent or broker gets you to sign a “Scope of Appointment” agreement—the document outlining what you’re going to discuss—they have to wait two full days before meeting with you to discuss or enroll you in a plan. This bill nullifies that requirement. For legitimate independent agents, this removes a significant administrative hurdle and speeds up the enrollment process for consumers. However, that 48-hour period was initially put in place as a consumer protection measure, giving beneficiaries time to cool off and think before committing. Removing it means consumers need to be extra vigilant, as the buffer against high-pressure sales tactics is now gone.

Incentives to Report Scams and Increased Oversight

To combat the shady side of Medicare sales, the bill introduces two key measures. First, it requires HHS to create a monetary reward system for people who report call centers running marketing scams targeting Medicare beneficiaries. If you’ve ever been targeted by one of those relentless, misleading calls, this provides a clear incentive for whistleblowers to expose the worst actors. Second, the Inspector General (IG) at HHS is now required to conduct a thorough review of call centers using fraudulent or misleading sales tactics and report their findings and recommendations to Congress within one year. This directs serious federal scrutiny toward the predatory practices that often plague the Medicare enrollment season.

Less Paperwork for Legitimate Agents

Finally, the legislation aims to standardize the registration process for independent agents and brokers across all Medicare Advantage and Part D plan sponsors. The goal is to make it less burdensome for independent agents to deal with their existing clients, allowing them to spend less time on paperwork and more time servicing customers. This standardization is intended to clarify the difference between a compliant independent agent and a lead-generating TPMO, ideally streamlining operations for the good players while tightening the screws on the bad ones.