How to Avoid Marketplace Enrollment Fraud

Evergreen page. Reviewed September 26, 2026.

Most Marketplace fraud isn't people faking coverage. It's agents enrolling or switching people without their knowledge to collect commissions, often using an income figure the person never gave them. CMS says it terminated more than 200 agents and brokers for this between January and September 2026 and is canceling roughly 750,000 enrollments it considers unauthorized or ineligible (September 22, 2026 announcement; see our update). Here's how to keep your own coverage clean.

Warning signs

• You got an insurance ID card, a premium bill, or a 1095-A tax form from a company you never chose.
• You were switched to a different plan and nobody called you first.
• You don't have the login to your own HealthCare.gov account, or someone else created it for you.
• The income on your application isn't a number you gave anyone.
• You were promised a "free" plan or a cash card for signing up. Marketplace plans can have a $0 premium, but nobody should be paying you to enroll.
• You can't reach the person who enrolled you. The phone number goes to a call center that has never heard of them.

Check your enrollment in ten minutes

1. Log in at HealthCare.gov. Reset the password if you have to.
2. Open your current application. Confirm the household, the income, and the plan.
3. Call 1-800-318-2596 and ask who the agent of record is. Remove anyone you don't know.
4. Save or print the confirmation page and your plan's summary of benefits.

What a legitimate agent does

Federal rules require Marketplace agents to obtain your documented consent before assisting you and to review the eligibility application with you before it's submitted (45 CFR 155.220). At our agency, every enrollment has a consent record and a review call. You'll know your plan's name, its monthly cost, and how to reach us.

Choosing an agent

• Verify the license. Any Iowa agent's license status is public through the Iowa Insurance Division.
• Ask if they're registered with the Marketplace for the current plan year. New agent registrations for plan year 2027 are frozen until February 1, 2027 (CMS-9872-IFC), so an agent who isn't registered now can't help you enroll this Open Enrollment.
• Ask how they document consent, and ask to see the application before it's submitted. A good agent expects the question.
• Prefer someone local you can call back in March when a claim is denied. The enrollment is the easy part.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find out who my agent of record is?

Call the Marketplace Call Center at 1-800-318-2596 and ask which agent or broker is listed on your application. You can also review your application after logging in at HealthCare.gov. If you don't recognize the name, ask to have it removed.

Someone enrolled me in a plan I didn't choose. What do I do?

Call the Marketplace Call Center first and report an unauthorized enrollment. Then call the insurer named on the card or notice you received. Keep the letters. If you want a local agent to help you sort it out, call us and we'll walk through it with you.

Is it fraud if an agent estimated my income for me?

Your application has to reflect your honest expected income. An agent should ask you, explain how the estimate affects your tax credit, and show you the number before submitting. If an agent entered an income you never gave them, especially one that happens to land in the highest-subsidy range, that's a warning sign.

What does an agent legally need from me before enrolling me?

Federal Marketplace rules require agents to obtain and keep documentation of your consent before helping you, and to review the application information with you before it's submitted (45 CFR 155.220). At our agency that means a signed or recorded consent and a review call, every time.