As used in this subpart—

Communications means activities and use of materials to provide information to current and prospective enrollees.

Communication materials means all information provided to current and prospective enrollees. Marketing materials are a subset of communication material.

Marketing means activities and use of materials that meet the following:

(1) Conducted by the MA organization or downstream entities.

(2) Intended to draw a beneficiary's attention to a MA plan or plans.

(3) Intended to influence a beneficiary's decision-making process when selecting a MA plan for enrollment or deciding to stay enrolled in a plan (that is, retention-based marketing).

Marketing materials—(1) Include, but are not limited to following:

(i) Materials such as brochures; posters; advertisements in media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards, or the internet; and social media content.

(ii) Materials used by marketing representatives such as scripts or outlines for telemarketing or other presentations.

(iii) Presentation materials such as slides and charts.

(2) Marketing materials exclude materials that—

(i) Do not include information about the plan's benefit structure or cost sharing;

(ii) Do not include information about measuring or ranking standards (for example, star ratings);

(iii) Mention benefits or cost sharing, but do not meet the definition of marketing in this section;

(iv) Are required under §422.111, unless otherwise specified by CMS based on their use or purpose; or

(v) Are specifically designated by CMS as not meeting the definition of the marketing definition based on their use or purpose.”

[83 FR 27914, June 15, 2018]