CAHIP Connection June 2023 Issue

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JUNE 2023

Welcome to CAHIP Connection!

Here’s a monthly update from CAHIP President Sue Wakamoto-Lee.

It’s time.

The CAHIP fiscal year ends on June 30, and thus, so does my term as president. Not surprisingly, there is a desire to reflect on the past year. Too cliché? Well, bummer for you. I’m doing it anyway.

And if you think I’m on the precipice of banality, just wait. I’m gonna use the acronym, CAHIP, to wax poetic about our association and the year in review. If you dare, forge ahead!

Camaraderie

Visiting our chapters truly brought me joy. Meeting so many of you was an honor. While I wasn’t able to visit every chapter, I was thrilled to see our members meeting again in-person. We realized how much we truly missed the camaraderie we experience with our colleagues, even our competitors. I look forward to seeing attendance at local and statewide events continue to rise, especially as the organizers experiment with venues, themes and unique content.

Advocacy

The primary value of the Association cited by our members is our advocacy efforts. While at the Federal level, we are active in Washington, D.C., it is our voice in Sacramento that has proven to be most valuable to our colleagues, clients and consumers. While the latter two may be unaware of all we do to protect their access to healthcare, we must continue to shout from the mountain top all that we do to protect our very livelihoods. Agents and health insurance professionals must know that we fight for everyone in our industry, whether members or future members.

Humility

The danger of thinking we know everything. Anyone who has served in a leadership role and is truly honest with themselves will tell you that they learned valuable lessons that often times were humbling. One of my favorite quotes from John Wooden is “Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be.” We can all learn from our mistakes, accepting that we may not always be right. (I’ll leave that last sentence out when I share this with my husband.) Admittedly, owning up to my mistakes this year wasn’t fun, but necessary for the good of the Association and you, the members. Leaders don’t have to be perfect, just willing to admit their imperfections and seek out those who are wiser.

Inspiration

I think I’d have to be absolutely, completely self-absorbed to elude being inspired by the many individuals with whom I had contact these last twelve months. (There’s hope for me yet!) The energy and creativity they ooze is contagious and uplifting. There is so much talent in this Association! As these individuals continue to exercise and expand their gifts, the future of CAHIP is in good shape.

Perseverance

This Association has persevered through some tough years, just like all of you. However, there is good news to celebrate. As of this writing, our membership has increased since FYE 2022. I am confident that our member numbers will continue to rise as incoming president, Tim Kanter, has made this a focal point of his term and Irma Romero will continue to throw her incredible energy into her role as VP of Membership for another year.

I have sad news that I must communicate to you as well. After struggling to find new leadership for many years and attendance that didn’t recover after the lockdown, a few of our chapters will be dissolving in the next few months. Thank you to all who served tirelessly in the Desert Cities, North Valley, and North Coast chapters. Your many years of dedication are appreciated by all those that you touched.

To all the members who reside in these chapter areas, you have probably already been contacted by your nearest chapter (Inland Empire, Sacramento and Golden Gate, respectively) to welcome you. These chapters have assured members that they will work to keep you engaged with the association through events, education and “Adopt-a-Leg”(islator).

While it’s painful to see a chapter dissolve, sometimes growth is spurred by pruning. Rather than spreading leadership and energy thin, we unite to provide more resources and opportunity.

Finally, thank you to all who served on the 2022-2023 CAHIP Executive Board. It has been an honor to work alongside you, learn from you and laugh with you.

· Tim Kanter, President-Elect

· Brad Davis, Immediate Past President

· Cathy Little, VP Finance (Cathy is leaving the Board after serving for four years)

· Irma Romero, VP Membership

· Dawn McFarland, VP Legislation

· Kristie Scavarda, VP Communications

· Charlotte McPherson, VP Public Affairs

· Dede Kennedy-Simington, VP PAC

· Jack Holder, VP, Professional Development

· Vanessa Ignacio, VP Community Outreach

· Pat Stiffler, Awards Chair

· Heather Siems, Vanguard Chair

· David Garcia and Rosamaria Marrujo, Medicare Chairs

May God richly bless the incoming CAHIP Board of Directors and all of you!

With gratitude,

Sue Wakamoto-Lee

2022-2023 CAHIP President

We Revamped Region 8 to Give You More of What You Need

This year's Business Development and Region 8 conference is jam packed with new classes and speakers to provide you with all the resources you need to enhance your leadership skills and grow your business.

We enhanced the conference and changed its name because it has more learning opportunities than ever before. There will be a diverse array of training topics to choose from including business operations, legislative, professional and leadership development, and media and communications.

We are excited to be joined by industry experts and mentumm Co-Founders Joe Buzzello and Tom Healy. They will teach us how to drive a performance culture in our organization.

There will also be plenty of networking opportunities. Plus, the conference is walking distance to Disneyland, downtown Disney, Angels stadium and more.

Don't miss out!

As we come to the close of the second quarter in 2023 we look forward to the beginning of certification season. Each year this month AHIP releases the annual certification for agents who write Medicare Advantage and Part D business. The cost to complete the certification directly through the AHIP site is $175. However, carrier partners offer agents the ability to complete the AHIP certification through their carrier portal for the discounted rate of $125.

In addition, some will also offer to reimburse you a portion of the $125 charge if you write a certain amount of Medicare Advantage or Part D plans through that carrier.

Watch for carrier invites over the next couple of weeks to complete the certification in the coming weeks.

We hope you joined us on our webinar Redetermination, The Final Rule 2024 and Inflation Reduction Act. Be sure to catch all our upcoming webinars throughout the year.

Congratulations to our Orange County Member Meg McComb!

Senator Janet Nguyen presented Meg McComb with an Assembly Resolution recognizing her for her service in the community.

Meg received the National Association of Health Underwriters Distinguished Award for 2022.

At the local chapter, Meg served as VP of Legislation 2007-2009, and as Chair of Communications for

OCAHU 2010-2012. At the national level, Meg served on the NAHU Media Relations Committee from 2017-2019, and served as VP of Media Relations from 2018-2019. She now serves as a proud member of the NAHU Education Board.

She was asked to join the Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce in November 2014 and served on the Cal State University of Fullerton Center for Leadership Board.

Thank you Meg for your dedication to the community!

Congratulations to former CAHIP President and VP of Communications Dorothy Cociu!

Dorothy Cociu's company Advanced Benefit Consulting & Insurance Services, Inc. has been selected as the #1 of the Top 20 Employee Benefits Solutions Providers for 2023 by HR Tech Outlook magazine in their June 2023 Employee Benefits Issue.

This is their third national HR Magazine recognition in 12 months.

Congratulations Dorothy on this wonderful achievement!

CAHIP shares the Healthy California for All Commission’s objective to ensure that all Californians have access to high quality, affordable healthcare and to improve transparency and stability in pricing.

CAHIP opposes SB 770, a bill advancing Single Payer in California passed off the Senate Floor and heading to the Assembly Health Committee.

Californians cannot afford a state-run health care system.

This legislation would create a workgroup to petition the federal government to redirect hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicare and Medi-Cal funding to a costly new, untested state-run health care system, thereby eliminating the Medicare and Medi-Cal programs that serve millions of Californians.

So what can you do?

Read our emails to stay up-to-date. Take action when you receive Operation Shouts and communicate with your legislators before key votes!
There are thousands of health insurance agents in California, and we need everyone to stand together on behalf of consumers. We need your help to inform agents about membership. Hey large agencies, we are looking at you! If you need someone to help you, reach out to any CAHIP board member! Click here to join now.