Overview
PlanCompare by ConnectureDRX is an online platform that allows agents and brokers to shop, quote, and enroll Medicare beneficiaries. It provides drug pricing and personalized plan options, including Medicare Advantage, MAPD, PDP, and Medicare Supplement plans. Visit PlanCompare’s website for more details.
With this integration, users can securely transfer Individual and Sales Records from AMS+ to PlanCompare for quoting and enrollment. After an enrollment is completed in PlanCompare, the enrollment’s Individual, Carrier Product, and Policy data is sent back to AMS+.
Please note, there are two versions of this integration—for both a broker and call center site. Both are virtually the same except the call center site may include a call script.
IN THIS ARTICLE
Video overview
Activating the integration
Setting up the integration
Managing integration access
Starting quotes in AMS+
Technical documentation
Data sent to PlanCompare
Data sent to AMS+
Common questions
Legacy components
Video overview
Activating the integration
Go to the Settings > Servicing > Integrations page and select either PlanCompare (Broker) or PlanCompare (Call Center). Then, select the “Add to AgencyBloc...” button.
Deactivating the integration
Go to the Settings > Servicing > Integrations > PlanCompare page and select the “Deactivate” button in the top-right corner.
Setting up the integration
For a smooth and optimal setup:
- You need to have an account with PlanCompare by ConnectureDRX. Please note, this is a separate subscription with PlanCompare that may include additional costs and fees outside of AMS+.
- You need your PlanCompare SSO URL and Partner ID. This is a unique link to PlanCompare's login site. Contact the PlanCompare Client Services Team for this info. Also, this URL changes every enrollment period.
- Review your Carriers and Plans/Carrier Products in PlanCompare and AMS+. Their names need to match or the integration could create duplicate Carrier Records and Carrier Products in AMS+. We recommend changing the names in AMS+ to match PlanCompare.
- Some PlanCompare data can be stored in Policy Custom Fields. You may want to create Custom Fields for the Enrollment Confirmation Number and Plan ID.
Setup Part 1: For quoting and enrollment sync
- Enter your Partner ID.
- Your Partner ID is a unique identifier from PlanCompare that never changes. Contact the PlanCompare Client Services Team for this info.
- Enter your PlanCompare SSO URL.
- Contact the PlanCompare Client Services Team for this info. If you need to process enrollments from the previous year, you can enter additional SSO URLS.
- Name the "Quoting Menu".
- Located on the Sales Record and Individual Record > Details tab, you can use this menu to send AMS+ profiles to PlanCompare's broker site or call center site for quoting.
- Save.
- You're now ready to set up your integration users. AMS+ Users that have a PlanCompare Username can send Sales Records and Individual Records to PlanCompare's broker site or call center site for quoting.
If you want to sync PlanCompare enrollments to AMS+, continue to Part 2.
Setup Part 2 (Optional): For enrollment sync only
If you've completed the setup for Part 1, select the "Sync PlanCompare Enrollments" checkbox. You should now see additional sync settings.
In PlanCompare, an enrollment includes a beneficiary and Medicare plan. In AMS+, a beneficiary is the equivalent of an Individual Record and a plan is the same as a Policy.
| PlanCompare | AMS+ |
|---|---|
| Beneficiary | Individual |
| Plan | Policy (and optionally Carrier Product) |
When PlanCompare sends enrollment data to AMS+, we will take steps to put that data in the right places based on your integration settings. See below for more details.
Individual Records
By default, we will try to match PlanCompare beneficiaries to existing Sales Records first. If a match is found, we will convert the Sales Record into an Individual Record. If the matching Sales Record is linked to an existing Individual, we will merge it into the Individual.
If a Sales Record is not found, we will attempt to match to existing Individual Records. We’ll first try to match on Individual ID. If there is no Individual ID in the enrollment data, we’ll try to match on First Name/Last Name/Date of Birth. If we can't find a match, we'll create a new Individual.
Then, we can optionally update all of the Individual's fields with the new info or only the address fields depending on your integration settings.
If you don’t have Sales Records or you’re not using them, see here.
You can choose what happens in your integration settings. What Individual fields are updated?
Policy Records
By default, we will automatically create a new Policy Record in AMS+ for every PlanCompare plan. What Policy fields are populated?
Also, we will try to match the carrier in a PlanCompare enrollment to a Carrier Record by carrier name. If we can't find a match, we will create a new Carrier Record and associate it with the new Policy Record.
The new Carrier Record's name will be the same as the PlanCompare Carrier name.
If we find a match, we'll associate the Carrier Record with the new Policy Record.
Carrier Products
If you choose to bring over Carrier Product data, we will try to match PlanCompare plans to existing Carrier Products by "Carrier Product Name".
If we can't find a match, we can create a new Carrier Product depending on your Carrier Product Sync settings. What Carrier Product fields are updated?
Managing integration access
Before you get started, make sure you have the following:
- Every AMS+ User who is going to use this integration should have their own PlanCompare Username. This allows your AMS+ User to send Sales Records and Individual Records to PlanCompare's broker site or call center site for quoting. The PlanCompare Username is also necessary for mapping the servicing agent to incoming Individuals and Policies via the enrollment sync.
- If you want to assign a servicing agent to incoming Individuals and Policies, you must have at least one Agent Record in your AMS+ account.
Once your integration settings have been saved, go to the "Users" tab. You will see a list of all your AMS+ Users.
Here, you can give an AMS+ User the ability to start quotes in AMS+ by adding their PlanCompare Username. This is the username that you use to log in to your PlanCompare account.
Notes:
- If you're quoting with multiple PlanCompare SSO URLs, the AMS+ User must be set up with the same PlanCompare Username on both plan year sites.
- It’s ok if an AMS+ User and PlanCompare username don’t match exactly. Just make sure the PlanCompare Username is valid and that you’re adding it to the right AMS+ User.
You can enter the PlanCompare Usernames one at a time for each AMS+ User or en masse via file upload.
You can also set the servicing agent for Individuals and Policies coming from PlanCompare.
Assigning servicing agents
If you’re using the enrollment sync, you will have the option to assign a servicing agent to new Individuals and Policies that are created by this integration.
Here’s how it works:
When PlanCompare sends an enrollment to AMS+, we will look for the PlanCompare Username attached to that enrollment.
If we successfully match a PlanCompare Username in AMS+, we’ll next look at the associated AMS+ Servicing Agent. This field points to an Agent Record in AMS+.
If there is an AMS+ Servicing Agent, we’ll assign it to any new Individuals and Policies.
Starting quotes in AMS+
If you have access to this integration, you will be able to send Sales Records and Individual Records to PlanCompare for quoting and enrollment.
Sending a Sales Record
Go to the record and select the ‘Send Quotes’ button to display a dropdown menu. It will include links for each menu label created in your PlanCompare integration settings.
Select a PlanCompare link to send the Sales Record to PlanCompare for quoting. See what data is sent to PlanCompare.
When finished, the record’s profile and enrollment information will be sent back to AMS+. See what data is sent to AMS+.
Sending an Individual Record
Go to the record and select the ‘Send’ button to display a dropdown menu. It will include links for each menu label created in your PlanCompare integration settings.
Select a PlanCompare link to send the Individual Record to PlanCompare for quoting. See what data is sent to PlanCompare.
When finished, the record’s profile and enrollment information will be sent back to AMS+. See what data is sent to AMS+.
What happens if I hit the Send button more than once?
When you send a Sales Record or an Individual Record for the first time, the integration will create a new Beneficiary profile in PlanCompare. This profile will have the sent record’s data and ID. In PlanCompare, make sure you save this profile.
The next time you send the record, the integration will match it to the same Beneficiary profile and update it if there were any changes made since the last time it was sent.
Technical documentation
Data sent to PlanCompare
When you send a Sales Record or an Individual Record to PlanCompare for quoting, here is the data we send over:
| AMS+ Field | PlanCompare Field |
|---|---|
| Zip Code* | Zip Code |
| First Name | First Name |
| Last Name | Last Name |
| DOB | Date of Birth |
| Medicare Beneficiary ID (MBI) | MBI |
| Medicare Effective Date (Part A) | Hospital (Part A) effective date |
| Medicare Effective Date (Part B) | Hospital (Part B) effective date |
| Email Address | |
| Home Phone** | Phone number |
| Address Line 1*** | Address 1 |
| Address Line 2*** | Address 2 |
| City*** | City |
| State*** | State |
*If the zip code has any trailing spaces at the end and you select the “Send” button, the Individual’s profile will fail to load in PlanCompare. Before sending an Individual, we recommend checking to make sure its zip code doesn’t have any trailing spaces at the end and to remove them if it has any.
**If we don’t find the home phone, we’ll try the cell phone. If we don’t find the cell phone, we’ll try the business phone.
***If more than one address is found, we’ll use the primary address. In addition, Address Line 2 is only sent for Individual Records.
Data sent to AMS+
When PlanCompare syncs enrollments to AMS+, here is the data that comes over:
Individual Records
| PlanCompare Field | AMS+ Field |
|---|---|
| Zip Code | Zip Code |
| First Name | First Name |
| Last Name | Last Name |
| Date of Birth | Date of Birth |
| Email Address | Email Address |
| Phone Number | Home Phone* |
| Address Type** | |
| Primary*** | |
| Address 1 | Address Line 1**** |
| Address 2 | Address Line 2 |
| City | City |
| State | State |
| Username | Servicing Agent***** |
| Part A Effective Date | Medicare Effective Date (Part A) |
| Part B Effective Date | Medicare Effective Date (Part B) |
| Medicare Number or Medicare Claim Number | MBI (Medicare Beneficiary ID) |
| Type | |
| Status |
*If we don’t find the home phone, we’ll try the cell phone. If we don’t find the cell phone, we’ll try the business phone.
**When creating/updating an Individual, we’ll use the Address Type specified in the integration settings.
***If creating a new Individual, the default will be Yes, is Primary. If adding a new address to an existing Individual, the default will be Yes, is Primary.
****If updating an existing Individual, we’ll try to match with an existing address. We will match on Zip Code and house number (house number will be defined as the first set of characters before the first space). If the address matches, we will not update anything. If the address does not match, we will add an additional address to the Individual Record. If creating a new Individual, we will add a new address to the Individual Record.
*****For new Individual Records only. See this section for more on assigning the servicing agent.
Only address fields:
| PlanCompare Field | AMS+ Field |
|---|---|
| Address Type* | |
| Primary** | |
| Address 1 | Address Line 1*** |
| Address 2 | Address Line 2 |
| City | City |
| State | State |
| Type | |
| Status |
*When creating/updating an Individual, we’ll use the Address Type specified in the integration settings.
**If creating a new Individual, the default will be Yes, is Primary. If adding a new address to an existing Individual, the default will be Yes, is Primary.
***If updating an existing Individual, we’ll attempt to match with an existing address. We will match on Zip Code and house number (house number will be defined as the first set of characters before the first space). If the address matches, we will not update anything. If the address does not match, we will add an additional address to the Individual Record. If creating a new Individual, we will add a new address to the Individual Record.
Policy Records
| PlanCompare Field | AMS+ Field |
|---|---|
| Carrier Name | Carrier Name* |
|
Enrollment Confirmation Number
Note: Typically a temporary number for tracking a Policy until its real policy number is issued. |
Policy Custom Field and/or Policy Number** |
| Premium Per Month | Premium |
| Submission Date | App Submit Date |
| Application Effective Date | Effective Date |
| Username | Servicing Agent*** |
| Status | |
| Plan Type | Coverage Type |
| Plan ID | Policy Custom Field**** |
| Carrier Product***** |
*If Carrier Name does not exist in AMS+, we’ll create a new Carrier Record where the Carrier Name = PlanCompare Carrier Name.
**This integration setting is optional. Depending on your settings, we’ll attempt to populate the "PlanCompare Enrollment Confirmation Number in a Policy Custom Field and/or the Policy Number field.
***See this section for more on assigning the servicing agent.
****This integration setting is optional. Depending on your settings, we’ll attempt to populate the PlanCompare Plan ID in the specified Policy Custom Field. If no Policy Custom Field is selected, we will not populate the PlanCompare Plan ID.
*****This integration setting is optional. Depending on your settings, we’ll attempt to match PlanCompare Plans to Carrier Products in AMS+ by the “Plan Name” or “Plan Name + Plan ID”. If a match is found, we will associate the Carrier Product with the Policy. If a matching Carrier Product is not found, we can create a new Carrier Product and associate it with the Policy depending on your settings.
Carrier Products
| PlanCompare Field | AMS+ Field |
|---|---|
| Plan Type | Coverage Type* |
| Product Name** |
*We’ll look up the corresponding Coverage Type that you’ve mapped the given Plan Type to. If the specified Coverage Type field option has been deleted or inactivated, we will automatically create that field option and/or make it active in your AMS+ account.
**We’ll look up the field "Match PlanCompare Plans to Carrier Products by" from the Sync Setup tab of the integration, if:
- You have selected "PlanName + Plan ID" then Product Name = Plan Name + Plan ID.
- You have selected “PlanName" then Product name = Plan Name.
Note: Does not include attachments or files.
Common questions
What if I already have the Individual Record in AMS+, will the integration create a new Individual or will it map to the existing Individual?
- If you send the Individual from AMS+ to PlanCompare and enroll them in a Policy, the Policy will be associated with the existing Individual.
- If you add the Individual's information directly into PlanCompare and then enroll them in a Policy, we will try to match on first name, last name, and date of birth to find the Individual in AMS+. If we find a match, the new Policy will be associated. If we do not find a match, we will create a new Individual and associate it with the Policy.
Will I be able to map carrier names, product names, and coverage type to what I already have in AB or will I have to change my AMS+ info to match what PlanCompare has?
- Carrier and Carrier Product names will need to be updated in AMS+ to match PlanCompare, or duplicates could be created.
- Coverage Types will be mapped between the two systems via the integration settings.
After I complete an enrollment in PlanCompare, I get a PDF copy of that application. Will the enrollment sync send the PDF to AMS+?
This integration doesn’t send attachments to AMS+, but you can manually upload the attachment to the Individual or Policy.
My upline uses PlanCompare, can I leverage their PlanCompare site?
We can only integrate 1 PlanCompare site per AMS+ account.
Are there additional costs associated with this integration?
No, you only need to pay for your AMS+ account and PlanCompare account. There are no costs associated with the integration feed.
How do I assign servicing agents to new Individuals and Policies?
Go to the Users tab in your integration settings and look at the “AMS+ Servicing Agent” column.
One of my users is having trouble sending over individuals for quoting in PlanCompare. What’s wrong?
There could be a few reasons behind this. Check and make sure:
- Each AMS+ user has a valid PlanCompare Username.
- You’re using a valid PlanCompare SSO URL and Partner ID.
- Your PlanCompare SSO URL is correct & up-to-date (PlanCompare changes it each year).
- The zip code of the Individual being sent over has trailing spaces. Remove the spaces and re-send the Individual.
I tried to send an Individual to PlanCompare for quoting but the page won’t finish loading. What’s happening?
- Your PlanCompare Username could be invalid.
- The PlanCompare SSO URL could be invalid or outdated.
I just created a new username to PlanCompare, but it won't work when I try to add it to an AMS+ user. What's wrong?
If you create a new username in PlanCompare, it may take a day before it will work in AMS+.
Legacy components
Note: Legacy components include outdated features and functionality that may not be present in your account. This section is only relevant if your account has them.
Legacy components in this section:
Matching criteria for syncing enrollments to Individuals
We’ll first try to match on Individual ID. If there is no Individual ID in the enrollment data, we’ll try to match on First Name/Last Name/Date of Birth. If we can't find a match, we'll create a new Individual.
Starting quotes from Sales Opportunities
You can start quotes from the right-hand summary of Sales Opportunities.