TPMO Disclaimer: 2027 Wording, Placement, and Plan Counts

The TPMO disclaimer is standardized CMS wording that any third-party marketing organization selling plans for more than one Medicare Advantage organization or Part D sponsor must use. It states how many organizations you represent and how many products they offer in the beneficiary's area. For contract year 2027 marketing, which began October 1, 2026, you say it on sales calls before any discussion of benefits, and the disclaimer no longer mentions SHIPs.

This guide quotes the current wording from 42 CFR 422.2267(e)(41) and 423.2267(e)(41). It also covers where the disclaimer must appear and how to keep your organization and plan counts accurate.

Key takeaways

• Independent agents, brokers, and captive agents can all be TPMOs. The disclaimer applies to any TPMO that sells plans for more than one MA organization or Part D sponsor.
• There are two versions. Use the one that starts "We do not offer every plan available in your area" unless you sell for every sponsor in the service area.
• For CY 2027 marketing, you say the disclaimer on sales calls before you discuss any benefits. It no longer has to come in the first minute, and the SHIP reference is gone.
• The disclaimer has to appear on your website, in email and chat, in print and TV marketing, and in social media posts that meet CMS's definition of marketing.
• Use the wording exactly as written. The rule allows only listed changes, such as filling in the counts. Count for the area where the beneficiary lives, and update your numbers every plan year and whenever your appointments change.
• Record marketing and sales calls and keep the recordings at least 6 years. Keep them as audio for the first 3 years.

What is the exact TPMO disclaimer wording for 2027?

The regulation gives two versions. Both appear in 42 CFR 423.2267(e)(41), and 422.2267(e)(41) uses the same wording for MA organizations.

If you don't sell for every sponsor in the service area

"We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent [insert number of organizations] organizations which offer [insert number of plans] products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options."

Use this version in any service area where you don't sell for every sponsor.

If you sell for every sponsor in the service area

"Currently we represent [insert number of organizations] organizations which offer [insert number of plans] products in your area. You can always contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE for help with plan choices."

Pick the version that fits each area you sell in. You might sell for every sponsor in one county and only some of them in the next.

Can you shorten or reword the disclaimer?

No. The TPMO disclaimer is standardized content. Under 42 CFR 422.2267(b), standardized content must be used in the form and manner CMS provides. The rule allows changes only for listed reasons, such as filling in the variable fields and correcting grammatical errors. If you think a change is needed, ask your carrier's compliance team before you make it.

Who counts as a TPMO?

Under 42 CFR 422.2260, a TPMO is any organization or individual, including independent agents and brokers, paid to do lead generation, marketing, sales, or enrollment work as part of the chain of enrollment. The chain of enrollment covers every step a beneficiary takes, from first learning about an MA plan to making an enrollment decision.

The same section says TPMOs may be first tier, downstream, or related entities (FDRs). They can also be entities that aren't FDRs but provide services to an MA plan or to a plan's FDR. That means agencies, marketing organizations, and paid lead generators can fall under the definition if they fit it.

CMS's Contract Year 2023 marketing FAQ says captive agents are TPMOs, and that TPMO requirements aren't limited to call centers.

What if you sell for only one carrier?

Being a TPMO and owing the disclaimer are separate questions. The current text of 422.2267(e)(41) requires the disclaimer from any TPMO that sells plans on behalf of more than one MA organization, and 423.2267(e)(41) says the same about Part D sponsors. A captive agent selling for a single organization is still a TPMO. Check with that carrier which TPMO requirements it applies to you, and remember that once you sell for more than one MA organization, or more than one Part D sponsor, you need the disclaimer.

What changed in the TPMO disclaimer for CY 2027?

The CY 2027 final rule (CMS-4212-F) made two changes to the disclaimer, according to CMS's CY 2027 marketing changes presentation:

1. It removed State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs) from the wording.
2. It replaced "within the first minute of a sales call" with "prior to the discussion of any benefits."

The Federal Register notice gives both the June 1, 2026 effective date and the October 1, 2026 date for CY 2027 marketing. Use October 1, 2026 as the date CY 2027 marketing must follow the new disclaimer. CMS's presentation counts the updated disclaimer among six marketing changes that apply to CY 2027 materials beginning October 1, 2026.

In the final rule, CMS said it prefers that TPMOs send beneficiaries to 1-800-MEDICARE, because SHIPs vary in how they work and train counselors.

When do you say the TPMO disclaimer on a sales call?

Under 422.2267(e)(41), you have to say the disclaimer during sales calls before any discussion of benefits. The regulation text doesn't treat inbound and outbound sales calls differently, so build it into both scripts.

What counts as discussing benefits?

In the final rule, CMS said it would not expect TPMOs to give the disclaimer when no benefits are discussed. Its examples of a benefits discussion are:

• Talking about benefits listed in a plan's Evidence of Coverage
• Explaining how out-of-pocket cost sharing might work, given the plan's benefit structure and the beneficiary's needs

Our advice: decide where your script's benefits section starts, and put the disclaimer right before it. If you aren't sure whether a question counts as a benefits discussion, say the disclaimer first.

What if the call ends before benefits come up?

CMS noted that many calls start with the TPMO collecting basic demographic information. If you find out the beneficiary has no valid election period and the call ends there, CMS said the disclaimer isn't necessary. Our Medicare enrollment periods cheat sheet can help you check election periods quickly.

Sample call opening (advice)

The script below shows where the disclaimer falls. Fill in your own counts, and follow the scope of appointment rules and your carriers' scripts.

Agent: "Thanks for calling. This is [name], a licensed agent with [agency]. This call is recorded. Is that all right with you?"

(If the caller says no, end the call politely.)

Agent: "Thanks. What's your ZIP code? And are you new to Medicare, or have you had a recent change like a move or a loss of other coverage?"

(If they have no valid election period, explain that and end the call.)

Agent, before any benefits: "Before we talk about plans, here's some required information. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent [number] organizations which offer [number] products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options."

Agent: "Now let's go over your doctors and prescriptions."

For the rest of a compliant phone sale, see how to sell Medicare over the phone.

Where else must the TPMO disclaimer appear?

42 CFR 422.2267(e)(41)(ii) to (v) and CMS's FAQ cover these channels:

Websites

The rule says "prominently displayed" and doesn't set a placement. Our advice is to put it where visitors will see it, such as near any plan content and in the site footer. If your site serves several areas with different counts, ask your carriers how they want the counts shown.

Social media and marketing posts

Under 422.2260, "marketing" means materials and activities meant to draw a beneficiary's attention to an MA plan, or to influence their decision to choose or keep one, that include content such as benefits, benefit structure, premiums, or cost sharing. CMS's FAQ says that if a social media post meets that definition, it must include the disclaimer.

Text messages

This is an edge case. The electronic communication rule covers email, online chat, and "other electronic means of communication." Paragraph (e)(32) of 422.2267 exempts text messages, social media, banners, outdoor ads, and envelopes from the Federal Contracting Statement, but that list applies only to the Federal Contracting Statement. Paragraph (e)(41), which covers the TPMO disclaimer, has no exemption list. Text a beneficiary only when you have the consent your carriers and the rules require, and never send unsolicited texts. Ask your carriers and compliance team how they want the disclaimer handled in texts.

Carrier materials like a Summary of Benefits

CMS's FAQ says you don't need the disclaimer on a plan-developed document, such as a Summary of Benefits, that you use exactly as provided. If you change the document, the disclaimer has to go on the material itself, not on a separate insert.

Footer template (advice)

We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent [number of organizations] organizations which offer [number of plans] products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.

If you sell in only one service area, use the same text, with counts, in your email signature and chat greeting. If your counts vary by area, use the counts for the beneficiary's area in each email or chat, and ask your carriers how they want this handled.

How do you count organizations and plans in a beneficiary's area?

In the CY 2024 final rule, CMS chose not to make TPMOs list every organization they represent. The disclaimer instead gives the number of organizations and the total number of products available to the beneficiary where they live.

The following steps are advice:

1. Build a worksheet with one row for each county or ZIP code you sell in.
2. In each row, list the organizations you currently represent that offer products there.
3. Count the total products those organizations offer in that area.
4. Mark which version applies. Use the second version only where you sell for every sponsor in the service area.
5. Date the worksheet, and keep each old version when you replace it.
6. Rebuild it before October 1 each year for the new plan year, and again whenever you add or lose an appointment or a carrier changes its service area.
7. Update scripts, web pages, and email templates the same day your counts change.

On a call, read the count for the area where the beneficiary lives, not the area where your office is.

How long do you keep sales call recordings?

Under 42 CFR 422.2274, plans must make sure TPMOs use the disclaimer as required. All marketing and sales calls, including the audio portion of calls held through web-based technology, must be recorded and kept in their entirety for at least 6 years.

Under 42 CFR 422.2274(g)(2), records must be kept in audio format for the first 3 years of the 6-year period. For years 4, 5, and 6, you may keep either audio or complete and accurate transcripts. CMS's presentation describes the 6-year period as a reduction from 10 years under the CY 2027 rule, so older pages that say 10 years are out of date.

CMS's FAQ says there are no exceptions to recording. If a beneficiary won't agree to be recorded, you must end the call.

What should you document?

This checklist is advice:

• Dated count worksheets, including every older version
• Each version of your call script, with the dates you used it
• Recordings of marketing and sales calls, kept for the full retention period
• Screenshots of website and social media disclaimers, with dates
• Copies of altered carrier materials showing the disclaimer on the material
• Written carrier instructions on texting, recording, and storage

Common TPMO disclaimer mistakes

1. Still using the SHIP version in scripts, footers, or flyers.
2. Moving the disclaimer later in the call without being sure it still comes before benefits.
3. Using last year's counts after the plan year changes or an appointment ends.
4. Paraphrasing or shortening the standardized text.
5. Leaving it out of email and chat.
6. Putting it on an insert instead of on an altered flyer.
7. Quoting your office's county instead of the beneficiary's.

Keeping disclaimer scripts and recordings organized in LeadGPT

You can save each area's disclaimer, with its counts, as a Message template, and the same template is available in the web app and the iPhone app. Calls you make or answer in LeadGPT are recorded and come with a transcript and AI summary in the Call Log, and the AI Assistant can search those transcripts, for example for "1-800-MEDICARE," to find calls you want to review. On the Lead Master plan, managers can review agents' recordings in Team Hub's Call review. Recording is always on and LeadGPT plays no announcement, so check recording-consent rules with your compliance team, and download any recordings you need for the full retention period. Take the interactive demo or see the features overview.

What to do next

1. Replace every SHIP-era disclaimer in your scripts, website, and materials.
2. Move the disclaimer in your call scripts so it comes before any benefits discussion.
3. Rebuild your count worksheet for CY 2027.
4. Ask each carrier or upline about texting, recording storage, and any rules stricter than CMS's.
5. Review the rest of the Medicare marketing guidelines for agents.

This guide is general information, not legal or compliance advice. Confirm each requirement with CMS, your carriers or upline, and your compliance team. Carriers may apply stricter rules. You'll find more guides in our compliance category, and our editorial policy explains how we research them.