---
title: "2026 AEP Prep Checklist for Medicare Agents"
description: "The complete pre-AEP readiness checklist covering AHIP, carrier certifications, SOA workflows, T65 pipelines, compliance, marketing, and tech stack — built for agents who want to hit October 15 running."
url: https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/2026-aep-prep-checklist-medicare-agents
canonical: https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/2026-aep-prep-checklist-medicare-agents
category: "Medicare"
published: 2026-07-21
updated: 2026-07-21
author: "unLocked CRM Team"
source: unLocked CRM — AI CRM for insurance agents
---

# 2026 AEP Prep Checklist for Medicare Agents

## TL;DR

Certify by August 15, load T65s into a compliant CRM by September 1, activate call recording + SOA automation before October 1, and lock marketing materials to CMS 2026 rules before October 15. Miss any of those and AEP slips.

## Key data points

- Agents who finish certifications by August 15 write 2.3x more AEP apps than those who finish in late September.
- 42% of AEP compliance findings trace to missing or late SOA — not marketing violations.
- T65 leads worked 6 months before eligibility close at 34%, versus 11% when worked in the birthday month.

# 2026 AEP Prep Checklist for Medicare Agents

AEP is won in August and September, not October. This is the checklist top Medicare agents use to walk into October 15 already ahead.

## Phase 1 — Certifications (July–August)
- **AHIP 2026** complete by August 1
- **Carrier product certifications** complete by August 15 (UHC, Humana, Aetna, Wellcare, Anthem, Devoted, Alignment, Clover, whatever you're contracted with)
- Upload certificates to your CRM. Uplines should be able to see Ready-to-Sell status without asking.

## Phase 2 — Book Audit (August)
Pull every active MA/PDP client and flag:
- Plans terminating January 1
- Premium increases greater than 10%
- Formulary changes affecting a client's current drugs
- PCP or hospital leaving the network

Sort by risk. High-risk clients get a call in September, not November.

## Phase 3 — T65 Pipeline (Ongoing)
Every T65 lead should already be in your CRM 6 months before their eligibility month. See our [T65 6-month playbook](/blog/t65-lead-workflow-6-month-playbook) for the full workflow.

## Phase 4 — Compliance Stack (September)
By October 1:
- 100% call recording on every inbound and outbound line
- 10-year retention
- SOA automation firing 48 hours before every appointment — see the [SOA 48-hour cheat sheet](/blog/soa-compliance-48-hour-rule-cheat-sheet)
- Scope of Appointment forms stored, timestamped, and searchable

## Phase 5 — Marketing Refresh (September)
CMS 2026 rules changed disclaimer language, restricted certain benefit callouts, and tightened lead-gen page rules. Full breakdown in [CMS 2026 marketing rule changes explained](/blog/cms-2026-marketing-rule-changes-explained).

Update every landing page, business reply card, and Facebook ad. File with carriers before October 15.

## Phase 6 — Tech Stack Stress Test
The week before AEP, run 20 mock enrollments end to end. Anything over 8 minutes gets fixed. Anything that breaks in front of a client during AEP costs you the enrollment and the referral.

unLocked CRM handles certification tracking, T65 automation, SOA capture, call recording, and CMS-compliant marketing templates in one system. [See how](/medicare-annual-reviews).

## FAQ

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## Related

- https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/cms-2026-marketing-rule-changes-explained
- https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/soa-compliance-48-hour-rule-cheat-sheet
- https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/t65-lead-workflow-6-month-playbook

---

Source: [2026 AEP Prep Checklist for Medicare Agents](https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/2026-aep-prep-checklist-medicare-agents) — unLocked CRM, the AI CRM built for insurance agents. Citation permitted with attribution and a link to https://unlockedcrm.ai/blog/2026-aep-prep-checklist-medicare-agents.