Medicare Advantage Leads: How to Plan Call Buying Across AEP, the January OEP and Special Enrollment Months

Set volume, billable rules, scripts and budget for each Medicare enrollment window separately. The Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) runs October 15 to December 7. The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (OEP) runs January 1 to March 31, and only people already in a Medicare Advantage plan can use it. Special enrollment periods (SEPs) cover the rest of the year and depend on a qualifying event. Each window has a different caller, a different screening question and a different budget shape.

Who can act in each window?

The CMS enrollment-periods document sets what a call can do, so start there. During AEP, a person on Original Medicare can move to a Medicare Advantage plan, and a person enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan can switch plans or go back to Original Medicare. Changes made in AEP take effect January 1.

The January to March window is narrower. CMS allows one change during the Medicare Advantage OEP. A caller in a Medicare Advantage plan can switch to another one, or leave and return to Original Medicare. A caller on Original Medicare cannot switch to a Medicare Advantage plan in this window. Medicare.gov describes the same period as January 1 to March 31 and only for people "already in a Medicare Advantage Plan," with changes taking effect the first of the month after the plan gets the request.

SEPs are not one calendar block. Each one depends on a qualifying event, so the screen has to confirm the event before any enrollment talk starts.

What should each window's call screen for?

Screening questions are a matter to agree with your lead seller or your own compliance team. They are not legal advice. The list below is a starting point for that conversation.

• AEP: Is the caller on Original Medicare or in a Medicare Advantage plan today? Does the caller need a plan that starts January 1?
• MA OEP: Is the caller enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan today? If not, the call should not be pitched as a switch into Medicare Advantage in this window.
• SEP: What is the qualifying event, and when did it happen?

Your billable-call definition should follow those answers. Agree in writing whether a caller who fails the window screen counts as billable under your rule. A call that cannot lead to an enrollment in that window should not be counted the same way as one that can. Medigap callers follow a different clock, set by each person's Part B start date; the screen for them is in Medicare supplement leads and the Part B date.

What changed for CY2027 calls?

Two compliance points affect calls for the 2027 plan year. Check both with your compliance team or carrier. This section is not a compliance guarantee.

First, the CY2027 final rule in the Federal Register, published April 6, 2026, removes the 48-hour wait between a scope of appointment (SOA) and a personal marketing appointment. CMS guidance on the SOA applies that change to CY2027 marketing from October 1, 2026. The SOA still has to be agreed and recorded before the personal marketing appointment.

Second, 42 CFR 422.2263(b)(7) says a plan may not knowingly target or send unsolicited marketing materials to any MA enrollee during the Open Enrollment Period. Read that rule with the January to March window in mind. Creative and audience targeting for people enrolled in Medicare Advantage need a review before launch. Agents must also be licensed and appointed under 42 CFR 422.2274.

Is Medicare lead demand only an AEP story?

Google Trends (US, web search, checked 10 Nov 2026) shows "medicare leads" as relative interest on a 0 to 100 scale, not as volume. The 12-month chart peaks at 52 in the week of March 1, 2026, which falls inside the January to March OEP. The five-year chart shows high weeks in October and November 2023 and in early November 2025, and its overall peak of 100 is the same March 2026 week. On the 12-month chart, "medicare advantage leads" is a top related query at 58, against 100 for "medicare insurance leads."

Read this as evidence that buyer interest does not stop at AEP. It does not show that the OEP drives more calls, and it does not give volume. Check the Google Trends comparison yourself, then compare it with your own call data.

How do you split a budget between AEP and the OEP?

Plan each window from its own numbers. The example below is hypothetical. It uses invented numbers, not client data and not vendor pricing.

| Window | Dates | Who can act | What to screen | Budget note | |---|---|---|---|---| | AEP | Oct 15 to Dec 7, changes effective Jan 1 | Original Medicare or Medicare Advantage | Current coverage type, plan start date, drug coverage needs | Broadest set of allowed changes; size it from your own past AEP calls | | MA OEP | Jan 1 to Mar 31 | People enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, one change | Current MA enrollment; no Original Medicare to MA switches | Smaller pool; judge it on its own cost per billable call | | SEP | Depends on the qualifying event | People with a qualifying event | The event and its date | Spread across the year; set it from your own data |

HYPOTHETICAL: invented numbers. Not client data. Not vendor pricing.

Say a buyer has $50,000 for the season and splits it $40,000 to AEP and $10,000 to the January block. The buyer's billable rule is the same for both.

| Line | AEP block | MA OEP block | |---|---|---| | Total cost (media and fees) | $40,000 | $10,000 | | Billable calls under the buyer rule | 500 | 100 | | Cost per billable call | $40,000 ÷ 500 = $80 | $10,000 ÷ 100 = $100 | | Sales | 25 | 6 | | Cost per sale | $40,000 ÷ 25 = $1,600 | $10,000 ÷ 6, about $1,667 |

In this invented case, the January block costs more per billable call. The decision is whether it clears your cost per sale target. Do not copy the AEP split into the OEP. Set each block from its own billable calls and sales.

What should you ask a lead seller or media buyer for each window?

Ask these questions before you agree to buy. Get the answers in writing for each window.

• What is the billable duration, and does it differ between AEP and the January to March window?
• How are duplicate callers counted inside the payout window, and does the window reset at January 1?
• Is the agent licensed for the product and the caller's state, and who checks it?
• Are calls recorded, and how long is the recording kept?
• How is the SOA agreed and recorded before the personal marketing appointment?
• When is the third-party marketing organization (TPMO) disclaimer read on the call?

Do not accept a vendor price as a substitute for these answers. Price matters only after the billable rule is clear.

Where do your own Medicare campaigns fit?

Buying leads and running your own calls are different options. The inbound calls vs live transfers vs own campaigns comparison covers that choice on cost per billable call and cost per sale.

Jamil Global buys ACA and U65, Medicare, final expense and life calls separately, because each has its own compliance rules and its own billable-call definition. For the ACA side of that split, including the 2027 Open Enrollment calendar and consent rules, see health insurance leads during ACA Open Enrollment. For life and final expense, which run year-round, see how to define a billable life insurance lead or call before you buy. The insurance verticals page sets out the enrollment calendar for each one. The Google and Meta media buying page describes how we run that work. Spend follows the states your agents are licensed in and the hours they are staffed. Ad copy and disclaimers follow CMS rules for third-party marketing organizations and are checked before launch. We report every week on profit per billable call.

Reporting is part of the work. The media ROI automation case study describes a Make.com workflow. It pulls spend from Google Ads, TikTok Ads and Facebook Ads, pulls call revenue from Ringba every 15 minutes, and posts ROI to Slack. The case study says it replaced about three hours a day of manual reporting.

To talk through your enrollment calendar, billable rules and budget split before any spend starts, book a call. Commercial details are discussed on that call.

Frequently asked questions

Can a caller on Original Medicare be sold a Medicare Advantage plan during January to March?

No. CMS does not allow a switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan during the Medicare Advantage OEP. Screen for current Medicare Advantage enrollment before you pitch a switch in that window.

Is the January OEP the same as AEP for buying calls?

No. AEP runs October 15 to December 7 and allows more kinds of change. The Medicare Advantage OEP runs January 1 to March 31, is limited to people enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, and allows one change. Plan a separate budget and billable rule for each.

Does search interest show that agents buy Medicare leads outside AEP?

It shows that buyer interest does not stop at AEP. It does not show volume, and it does not prove that the OEP drives calls. Use your own billable-call data to judge each window.

Should I stop Medicare spend after AEP?

Not as a rule. Decide per window, using cost per billable call and cost per sale on a single billable definition. A window with a smaller pool can still pay if its cost per sale clears your target.

Sources and dates

• Medicare.gov, "Joining a health or drug plan," enrollment periods and Medicare Advantage OEP, checked 10 Nov 2026: https://www.medicare.gov/sign-up-change-plans/joining-a-health-or-drug-plan
• CMS, "Understanding the Medicare Advantage and Part D enrollment periods" (PDF), checked 10 Nov 2026: https://www.cms.gov/files/document/understanding-map-part-d-enrollment-periods.pdf
• Federal Register, CY2027 final rule (published April 6, 2026), checked 10 Nov 2026: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/04/06/2026-06600/medicare-program-contract-year-2027-and-certain-contract-year-2026-policy-and-technical-changes-to
• eCFR, 42 CFR 422.2263 (marketing and unsolicited material), checked 10 Nov 2026: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-42/chapter-IV/subchapter-B/part-422/subpart-V/section-422.2263
• eCFR, 42 CFR 422.2274 (agent and broker licensing and appointment), checked 10 Nov 2026: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-42/chapter-IV/subchapter-B/part-422/subpart-V/section-422.2274
• Google Trends, US web search for "medicare leads" and related queries, checked 10 Nov 2026: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%2012-m&geo=US&q=medicare%20leads,aca%20leads,final%20expense%20leads,life%20insurance%20leads,insurance%20live%20transfers&hl=en-US
• Jamil Global insurance verticals, media buying and the media ROI automation case study, checked 10 Nov 2026