Is Medicare help free, and how do agents get paid?
We are paid commissions by insurance companies when you enroll through us, the same way virtually every agent in America is paid. You never pay us, and your price is identical with or without an agent. What differs between agencies is not the payment model; it is whether anyone tells you about it this plainly.
Because commissions vary somewhat between products, an honest practice needs a rule, and ours is simple: the recommendation is built from your doctors, your medications, and your budget first, and we will show you the comparison across companies so you can see the reasoning. If you ever feel a recommendation serves us more than you, ask us to walk through it again. That request is always welcome here.
What can an independent agency NOT do?
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 14 organizations which offer 93 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options. No independent agency offers every plan, and any agency implying otherwise is misleading you: we cannot see plans from companies we are not appointed with. California's free HICAP counselors can also help.
We tell every client this at the first meeting, because the limitation is real and you deserve to weigh it. What we can promise is breadth that covers the large majority of what Los Angeles seniors actually enroll in, and the honesty to say, out loud, when the right answer for you is something we do not sell, whether that is a plan outside our appointments, Medi-Cal, or no change at all. People are sometimes surprised how often our advice is to keep exactly what they have.
Who is Goulson Insurance the WRONG fit for?
If you want the absolute largest possible menu regardless of who answers the phone later, a giant call center will show you more options than we carry. If you prefer to research and enroll entirely on your own, Medicare.gov does that well and free. And if you need Medi-Cal planning as your primary path, an elder law attorney or a HICAP counselor should lead, not an agent.
We would rather lose you honestly than win you with an overstatement. Our practice is built for people who want a knowledgeable human who explains things patiently, checks the details before enrollment, and remains personally reachable for years afterward, in English, Spanish, or Hebrew. That is the trade we offer: not the biggest menu in America, but a family that stands behind every enrollment with our own names and direct phone numbers.
What does personal accountability mean here?
It means the people who enroll you are the people who answer when something goes wrong. Lara, Jordan, and Daniel Goulson are licensed individuals with their direct lines and emails published on this site, and when a claim is denied or a bill looks wrong in February, you call the person who knows your file, not a call center queue.
Review counts are evidence, and we are proud of ours, but accountability is the better test of an agency: can you name the human responsible for your enrollment, and will that human still be here in five years? In our case you can name three, they are family, and the practice carrying their name is the answer to whether they will be here. That is the entire business model, and it is why most of our new clients arrive as referrals from old ones.
About Lara GoulsonCan I sign up for Medicare myself instead of using a broker?
Yes, and for some people that is the right call. You can enroll directly at Medicare.gov or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE, and California runs a free counseling service, HICAP, at 1-800-434-0222, which is independent of any agency. Your premium is identical whichever route you take, because the insurance company pays the agent, not you.
So the question is not whether help costs anything. It is whether it is worth your time. Going direct works well when you already know the plan you want and your doctors and prescriptions are settled. An agent earns a place when the comparison is genuinely hard, or when something goes wrong in February and you would rather not sit on hold alone. We will tell you plainly which of those you are, including when the answer is that you do not need us.