AHIP certification is one of the most common annual training programs used by insurance agents who sell Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D plans. The training covers Medicare rules, plan types, enrollment requirements, marketing standards, and compliance topics agents need to understand when representing Medicare plans.
For 2027, agents and brokers who sell Medicare Advantage and Part D products on behalf of participating organizations must continue to satisfy annual Medicare training and testing requirements. AHIP is widely used by insurance carriers as a way for agents to complete that training.
AHIP certification does not replace an insurance license. Before selling Medicare insurance products, an agent must hold the appropriate insurance license for the state where the business is conducted and satisfy any additional carrier contracting, appointment, and certification requirements.
If you are not yet licensed, review our Insurance License Requirements guide to understand the licensing process before moving into Medicare certification.
AHIP Certification 2027 Quick Facts
- Opened: June 22, 2026
- Final exam: 50 questions
- Time limit: 2 hours
- Passing score: 90%
- Standard training price: $175
- Required annually: Medicare Advantage and Part D agents must satisfy annual Medicare training and testing requirements
- After AHIP: Carrier-specific certifications, contracting, appointments, and ready-to-sell requirements may still apply
What Is AHIP Certification?
AHIP stands for America’s Health Insurance Plans. What insurance agents commonly call AHIP certification is AHIP’s Medicare training program used by many carriers to satisfy annual Medicare training and testing requirements.
The training is designed for agents and brokers who work with Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D products.
CMS requires Medicare organizations to ensure that agents and brokers selling their Medicare products are trained and tested annually on Medicare rules and regulations and on the benefits of the plans they represent.
AHIP provides a standardized training program that many carriers accept as part of that annual certification process.
Is AHIP Certification Required to Sell Medicare?
Annual Medicare training and testing are required for agents and brokers who sell Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D products on behalf of Medicare organizations.
AHIP itself, however, is not a government-issued Medicare license. CMS does not require every agent in the country to use AHIP by name. The organization or carrier an agent represents determines the training program it accepts.
AHIP states that the majority of its member organizations and partners accept its Medicare training to meet their training requirements and recommends confirming requirements directly with each health plan.
This distinction is important. An agent may need annual Medicare certification, but the exact training path can depend on the carrier.
Who Needs AHIP Certification?
AHIP certification is primarily relevant to licensed agents and brokers who plan to sell Medicare Advantage, Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug, or stand-alone Medicare Part D plans through carriers that accept or require AHIP.
An agent who sells only other types of insurance may not need AHIP.
Medicare Supplement insurance should also be treated separately. Medicare Supplement is not the same as Medicare Advantage or Part D, and the training and carrier requirements for selling Medicare Supplement coverage can differ.
The best approach is to determine which Medicare carriers and products you plan to represent and confirm their certification requirements before beginning the training.
Do You Need an Insurance License Before Selling Medicare?
Yes. AHIP certification is not a substitute for a state insurance license.
CMS states that agents and brokers must be licensed in the state where they conduct business in addition to satisfying annual Medicare training and testing requirements.
For someone entering the Medicare market, the process generally looks like this:
- Obtain the appropriate Health-related insurance license for the state where you plan to sell
- Complete the Medicare training accepted by the carriers you plan to represent
- Pass the applicable Medicare certification exam
- Complete carrier-specific product certifications
- Complete contracting and appointment requirements
- Confirm that you are ready to sell with each carrier
AHIP builds on the state insurance license. It does not create the legal authority to sell insurance.
If you still need to become licensed, view our insurance licensing courses to select your state and begin preparing for the licensing exam.
What Are the AHIP Certification Requirements for 2027?
For the 2027 plan year, AHIP’s Medicare training continues to cover the Medicare knowledge and compliance areas agents need when representing Medicare plans.
AHIP divides the Medicare training into five modules along with Nondiscrimination training, Fraud, Waste & Abuse, and General Compliance.
Agents complete the required training material and then take the AHIP Medicare final exam.
Passing AHIP is only one part of becoming certified to represent Medicare products. Individual carriers may require additional product training, certifications, contracting, appointments, or other requirements before an agent can sell their plans.
When Does AHIP Certification Open for 2027?
The 2027 AHIP Medicare certification cycle opened June 22, 2026.
That allows agents to complete the upcoming plan year’s Medicare training and then move into carrier-specific certification requirements. Current carrier and agency certification resources confirm the June 22 opening date for the 2027 AHIP cycle.
Agents should still follow the certification schedule provided by the individual carriers they plan to represent.
What Does AHIP Medicare Training Cover?
AHIP Medicare training covers both Medicare fundamentals and the rules agents must understand when marketing and selling Medicare products.
The curriculum includes topics such as:
- Medicare Parts A, B, C, and D
- Medicare eligibility and benefits
- Medicare Advantage plans
- Medicare prescription drug coverage
- Medicare enrollment and disenrollment
- Marketing and communications requirements
- Nondiscrimination requirements
- Fraud, Waste & Abuse
- General Compliance
CMS’s 2027 training guidelines also require Medicare organizations to ensure their agents understand Medicare rules and the specific benefits of the plans they sell.
How Does the AHIP Exam Work?
After completing the Medicare training modules, agents take the AHIP Medicare final exam.
The final exam contains 50 randomly selected questions drawn from the five Medicare training modules.
Agents have two hours to complete the exam and must earn a score of 90% to pass. If the two-hour limit is reached, AHIP automatically submits the examination.
AHIP does not release the questions an agent answered incorrectly after the examination. This policy is intended to protect the integrity of the exam.
How Many Questions Are on the AHIP Exam?
The AHIP Medicare final exam contains 50 questions.
The questions are randomly selected from the five Medicare training modules.
Because the required passing score is 90%, an agent must answer at least 45 of the 50 questions correctly to pass.
What Score Do You Need to Pass the AHIP Exam?
You need a score of 90% to pass the AHIP Medicare final exam.
That means you can miss no more than five questions on a 50-question exam.
The 90% passing requirement makes preparation particularly important. Agents should understand the Medicare concepts and rules covered in the training rather than relying on the final examination itself to identify weak areas.
How Long Is the AHIP Exam?
Agents have two hours to complete the AHIP Medicare final exam.
If the examination remains active when the two-hour limit is reached, AHIP automatically submits it.
Closing the exam window before submitting does not count as a completed submission, but the answers are not saved and the examination must be restarted.
How Many Times Can You Take the AHIP Exam?
The number of AHIP exam attempts available can depend on the carrier or certification path you are using.
AHIP’s current Medicare training FAQ explains what counts as a valid final exam attempt but does not specify a universal maximum number of attempts. Some carrier certification programs provide three attempts to earn the required 90% passing score.
Before taking the exam, review the certification instructions for the carrier or organization through which you are completing AHIP so you understand the attempt limits that apply to you.
Preparing thoroughly before the first attempt is preferable to using available attempts as practice exams.
Is the AHIP Exam Open Book?
No. AHIP’s current Medicare training FAQ specifically states that the AHIP Medicare final exam is not an open-book examination.
AHIP does provide study tools before the exam. Review questions are available for the training modules, those review questions can be submitted an unlimited number of times, and completed modules can be reviewed before taking the final. PDF downloads of the training modules are also available for study.
The scores from the module review questions do not count toward the final exam.
How Much Does AHIP Certification Cost?
AHIP’s current Medicare training FAQ references a standard training price of $175 and notes that carrier-specific rates may differ.
Some carriers and insurance organizations provide discounted AHIP access. Current 2027 carrier certification programs commonly advertise a $125 rate when the training is accessed through their designated AHIP link.
Because these discounts can vary, check with the carrier, agency, FMO, or other organization you work with before purchasing AHIP directly.
Using the correct carrier link can also help ensure that your certification is associated with the appropriate carrier process.
How Long Does AHIP Certification Take?
There is no single required amount of time to complete AHIP certification.
Completion time depends on how quickly an agent works through the five Medicare modules and the additional compliance training, how much review is needed, and whether the final exam is passed on the first attempt.
The final exam itself allows up to two hours.
Agents who are new to Medicare should allow enough time to understand the material rather than focusing only on finishing the certification as quickly as possible.
Do You Have to Complete AHIP Every Year?
Medicare Advantage and Part D agents are subject to annual Medicare training and testing requirements.
CMS requires organizations to ensure the agents and brokers who sell their Medicare products are trained and tested annually.
As a result, an agent who completed AHIP for a previous plan year should expect to complete the applicable certification process again for the new plan year.
This is one reason AHIP certification searches frequently include the year, such as AHIP certification 2027. The training is updated as Medicare rules and requirements change.
What Happens After You Pass AHIP?
Passing AHIP does not necessarily mean you can immediately begin selling every Medicare plan.
Individual insurance carriers may still require:
- Carrier-specific product training
- Additional certification exams
- Contracting
- Appointments
- Market-specific requirements
- Completion of compliance documentation
- Confirmation of ready-to-sell status
AHIP also allows agents to transmit certification information to participating carriers. AHIP recommends contacting the carrier directly if there are questions about whether a score has been received.
Do not assume that passing AHIP alone makes you ready to sell. Confirm your status with every carrier you plan to represent.
AHIP Certification vs. a Health Insurance License
A state Health insurance license and AHIP certification serve different purposes.
The insurance license establishes an agent’s legal authority to transact the applicable insurance products within a state.
AHIP provides Medicare-specific training and testing used by many Medicare organizations as part of their annual agent certification process.
An insurance license comes first in the licensing framework. AHIP and carrier certifications are additional requirements associated with representing Medicare products.
Someone interested in becoming a Medicare agent should therefore begin by determining the Health-related insurance license required by their state.
Does AHIP Certification Include Continuing Education Credit?
AHIP offers continuing education credit options in participating states.
The number of credits, classification of those credits, fees, monitoring requirements, and other procedures vary by state. AHIP directs agents to check the CE information for their individual state before purchasing credits.
AHIP certification and state continuing education requirements should still be viewed separately. Completing AHIP does not automatically mean an agent has satisfied every CE requirement for license renewal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does AHIP stand for?
AHIP stands for America’s Health Insurance Plans. The organization provides the Medicare training commonly referred to as AHIP certification.
What is AHIP certification used for?
AHIP certification is Medicare training used by many insurance carriers as part of their annual certification requirements for agents selling Medicare Advantage and Part D products.
Is AHIP certification required for 2027?
Agents selling Medicare Advantage and Part D plans must satisfy annual Medicare training and testing requirements. Whether AHIP specifically is required depends on the carrier or organization the agent represents.
When did 2027 AHIP certification open?
The 2027 AHIP certification cycle opened June 22, 2026.
Is there a deadline to complete AHIP certification for 2027?
There is not one universal AHIP completion deadline for every agent. Medicare carriers establish their own certification and ready-to-sell deadlines, so agents should review the requirements for each carrier they plan to represent. Completing AHIP earlier also leaves time to finish carrier-specific certifications before those deadlines. Current carrier guidance confirms deadlines vary by organization.
Is the AHIP exam hard?
The AHIP exam can be challenging because agents must earn a 90% score on a 50-question final exam. The training covers Medicare rules, enrollment requirements, plan types, marketing and compliance requirements, and Fraud, Waste & Abuse. Agents who are new to Medicare may need more preparation than experienced Medicare agents.
How many questions are on the 2027 AHIP exam?
The AHIP Medicare final exam contains 50 randomly selected questions from the five Medicare training modules.
What score do you need to pass AHIP?
A score of 90% is required to pass.
How long do you have to take the AHIP exam?
You have two hours to complete the final examination.
How many attempts do you get on the AHIP exam?
AHIP does not publish a universal maximum number of final exam attempts in its current Medicare training FAQ. Some carrier certification programs provide three attempts, so agents should review the requirements for the carrier or organization through which they are completing AHIP.
Is the AHIP exam open book?
No. AHIP states that the Medicare final exam is not open book.
How much does AHIP certification cost?
AHIP’s standard training price is $175, although carrier-specific pricing can differ. Some current carrier and agency programs provide discounted access, commonly reducing the price to $125.
Is AHIP the same as an insurance license?
No. AHIP certification is Medicare-specific training. Agents still need the appropriate state insurance license to legally sell insurance.
Does AHIP let you sell Medicare immediately?
Not necessarily. Carrier-specific certification, contracting, appointments, and confirmation of ready-to-sell status may still be required.
Do you have to take AHIP every year?
Agents selling Medicare Advantage and Part D products are subject to annual Medicare training and testing requirements, so Medicare certification must be completed for each applicable plan year.
Becoming Licensed to Sell Medicare Insurance
If your goal is to become a Medicare insurance agent and you are not yet licensed, begin with the insurance licensing requirements for the state where you plan to sell.
The appropriate Health-related insurance license establishes the state authority needed to sell insurance. AHIP and carrier certifications then build on that foundation by addressing the additional training requirements associated with Medicare Advantage and Part D products.
National Online Insurance School provides state-specific Life and Health insurance licensing courses and exam preparation to help new agents complete the first stage of that process.
View Our Insurance Licensing Courses to choose your state and begin preparing for the insurance licensing exam.
For a broader overview of state licensing requirements, review our Insurance License Requirements guide.
