Choosing a Medicare agent near you: what to look for, how to check, and where I am

No agent can honestly name themselves the best; pick one you can check, rather than one who tells you they are good. Look for a current New York license in the DFS lookup, a straight answer about which carriers they represent and how they are paid, knowledge of which plans the local hospitals accept, and reviews from real clients you can read yourself. I am one option to check that way: Ibrahim Afyon, RSSA® #9932, NPN 21711447, with an office in Clifton Park and my Google reviews linked on every page. For a free second opinion that sells nothing, the HIICAP counselors at each county's Office for the Aging cover every plan.

Five questions. Are you licensed in New York, and what is your license number? Which carriers are you appointed with, and how many organizations and plans do you represent here? How are you paid? Will you check my doctors, my hospital and my prescriptions against each plan before recommending one? Who do I call after I enroll if a claim or a prescription goes wrong? Clear answers to all five are a good sign; a vague answer to any of them is a reason to keep looking.

No. Comparing plans, enrolling and the yearly review cost you nothing; the carrier pays the agent a commission that Medicare caps at the same amount for every carrier, and your premium is the same whether you enroll through an agent, the carrier or medicare.gov. In New York a broker may only charge a fee with a written disclosure you sign first (Insurance Law §2119); I do not use one. The full picture is on the what it costs page.

An agent or broker is licensed by New York, appointed by specific carriers, and can compare and enroll you in those carriers' plans; the terms are used almost interchangeably for Medicare. A HIICAP counselor works for the county Office for the Aging, covers every plan, sells nothing and cannot enroll you. I am an agent; I recommend HIICAP to anyone who wants a second opinion, and the county offices are listed on the HIICAP page.

Search the name in the NY Department of Financial Services license lookup; every agent and broker is listed with license numbers and expiry. Mine are LA-1934647 for life, accident and health, and BR-1934647 and PC-1934647 for property and casualty; my National Producer Number is 21711447. If a name is not there, do not sign anything.

There is no single Medicare certification, so ask which one is meant. Federal rules require each carrier to train and test the agents who sell its Medicare Advantage plans every year, on Medicare rules and on that carrier's own plans, and the agent must score 85% or higher on every test; that yearly sign-off is what carriers often call being ready to sell. Some agents hold separate credentials too; the Registered Social Security Analyst (RSSA®) designation, for example, is about Social Security claiming, not Medicare plans. Mine, all checkable: AHIP Medicare training completed for the 2027 plan year, RSSA® #9932, and a New York license, LA-1934647, in the DFS lookup.

Check rather than take anyone's word for it. Look the agent up by name in the NY DFS licensee search; ask which carriers they're appointed with and how many organizations and plans they represent, which they're required to tell you; ask how they're paid; and notice whether they check your doctors and prescriptions before recommending anything. Be wary of anyone who pushes you to decide on the first call, asks for your Medicare number before you've asked for help, or says they're from Medicare. Read reviews you can see for yourself; mine are my Google reviews.

No. A first call can be by phone or WhatsApp, and full reviews work well by video. I meet in person in Clifton Park, off Northway Exit 9, by appointment, and I visit clients at home across Saratoga, Albany, Schenectady, Rensselaer, Warren and Washington counties when that is easier. Weekend mornings are part of my regular hours, and evening appointments are available by arrangement.

No. I am a licensed insurance agent, not connected with the federal Medicare program or the Social Security Administration. To reach Medicare itself call 1-800-MEDICARE or use medicare.gov; the Social Security offices in Albany, Schenectady, Troy and Glens Falls are on the SSA offices page, with hours and what each handles.

If they're selling something, no. Medicare says it will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home, and it only calls asking for personal information in limited situations. Don't give your Medicare number or Social Security number to an unexpected caller, and don't join a plan over the phone unless you were the one who called and asked for help. Hang up and call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) yourself to check, or to report the call as possible fraud.

Because federal rules require it. Before an agent meets with you about Medicare Advantage or Part D plans, the agent must agree with you on, and record, which types of products you want to discuss, and for an in-person meeting it has to be in writing. It protects you: the agent can't market other kinds of products in that appointment without a new Scope of Appointment, and it's a record of what you asked for, not an application. A Scope of Appointment is valid for 12 months from the date you sign it.