Can I Reuse Last Year's Drug List in My Survey?
One of our most frequently asked questions: can a survey go out pre-filled with a client's drugs or info from last year, so they just update it? Short answer: no — and it's by design. Here's the full reasoning.
The short answer: every survey starts fresh
RetireFlo doesn't support pre-loading last year's drugs or personal information into a survey. It's not a missing feature — it's a deliberate choice, for the reasons below.
Data security makes pre-filling a non-starter
RetireFlo is HIPAA compliant, SOC 2 Type II compliant, and encrypted end-to-end. Pre-loading a client's health information into a survey link would mean either exposing that data on an unprotected public link — which instantly fails those security standards — or forcing every beneficiary to manage a username, password, or verification code.
We actually tested the alternative — it flopped
In 2023, our home agency pressure-tested a version with authentication codes. The result: an entire AEP spent as "code chasers" — clients calling to ask where their code went, whether it was texted or emailed. For a Medicare-eligible audience, remembering a login from last September just doesn't work — and it gets worse as your agency scales.
Pre-filled data gets rubber-stamped
In that same test, clients who did get in mostly glanced at a two-year-old drug list and said "yeah, looks right" — when statistically, an unchanged list is almost impossible. And even for the rare unicorn whose meds haven't changed: what if they moved, added a specialist, changed their phone number, or stopped sharing an email with their spouse? Stale data hides all of that.
Fresh data is the whole point — and the survey is short
The survey is only about 10 questions (11 on ACA). You're not asking clients for a life history — just a current snapshot. You need a fresh scope and a fresh ACA consent form every year anyway, and a fresh snapshot is what lets you actually do your job: telling a client whether their PDP, Medicare Advantage, or ACA plan still makes sense.
Good to know
- Fresh paperwork is required annually anyway — a new scope of appointment and ACA consent form every year, so a fresh survey fits the rhythm you already follow.
- Plan reviews are free to your clients — asking them to put in ten questions' worth of effort is a fair trade for a review that's actually accurate.
- RetireFlo is the only CMS-compliant intake platform in the country — the fresh-data design is part of what keeps it that way.
Still stuck?
Grab a time with the RetireFlo team and we'll walk through it with you — or ask the community, someone's always online.