Is USHEALTH Advisors a pyramid scheme? No. But, you should think twice before giving it your time and effort. Here is why.
Do you enjoy making hundreds of calls per day, paying dozens of fees, and earning an unstable income? Well, that’s what you can expect working as a USHEALTH Advisors insurance agent.
USHEALTH Advisors attracts agents under a business model that doesn’t limit your earning capacity. However, you will need to pay for just about everything. This includes leads, software access, state licenses, office fees, and even phone access fees.
USHEALTH Advisors doesn’t have the layered structure that multi-level marketing companies have. This makes it appear just like any other insurance company. Most agents don’t realize they’re being overworked and underpaid until they have spent many months with the company.
In this income idea guide, I will talk about my personal experience as a USHEALTH Advisors insurance agent. I will discuss the company’s compensation structure and how much you can make in this role.
My goal is to help you understand how USHEALTH Advisors works. I hope to bring you up to speed with the company’s practices before you decide to join them.
This article was penned by our Editorial Team at Incomepedia with the help of a former US Health Advisors Insurance Agent.
Table of Contents
My Personal Experience
My story with USHEALTH Advisors began in late 2021. I had just graduated from my public high school the year before and was taking a gap year to consider my options.
I planned to pursue a business degree at a community college at some point in the future. But I wanted to save up some cash before then.
I wasn’t interested in flipping burgers or working at a retailer, as some of my other peers had been doing. I knew it was possible to earn a lot of money in sales. So I began looking into sales positions at different types of companies.
I stumbled onto many multi-level marketing companies during this time. This included Young Living, Arbonne, and Mary Kay. But I was skeptical about joining any company with the kind of layered structure they had.
I eventually found USHEALTH Advisors and looked through their website. I learned they sold health insurance with underwriting from The Freedom Life Insurance Company.
I didn’t know much about insurance at the time. But I had heard you could make a lot of money as an insurance agent. USHEALTH Advisors seemed attractive for a number of reasons. This included:
- They didn’t require you to possess a degree to join
- They offered you weekly training
- They didn’t place a limit on your earning capacity
I was confident I would be able to make a lot of money if I put in enough effort. So I applied on USHEALTH Advisors’ website. The company responded and set up a phone interview the next day.
The interview itself was relatively straightforward. The hiring manager asked basic questions such as “What days of the week are you available to work?”, and “How confident are you at speaking over the phone?”.
The hiring manager then told me to contact them once I had obtained a Life, health, and accident license. I agreed to this and spent the next few days completing online training. I then gave the insurance license exam.
I paid around $600 to cover training materials and the exam fee, so I was relieved when I learned I had passed the exam on my first try. I then contacted USHEALTH Advisors, and they asked me to come into their office the following Monday.
I spent the next week training on-site with other new hires. While the mentors did teach me about the different insurance plans the company offered. They focused mostly on the different ways to approach people over the phone.
This included ways to learn about a potential customer’s background and suggest a plan that could appeal to them. I studied this approach carefully and began applying it when I started cold calling people the following week.
I lasted around four months at USHEALTH Advisors before quitting. The truth is that I wanted to leave after my first week. I stayed on only because I felt I would eventually get the hang of things and make more money. That did not happen.
I was working ten hours a day and seven days a week. I made over three hundred calls per day, but made a sale once every few days. If this wasn’t demotivating enough, I was paying fees for just about everything.
Fees for renting a cubicle, fees for phone access, and fees for access to the lead generation software I needed to make calls. I was paying for all this WITHOUT GETTING A BASE SALARY. USHEALTH Advisors’ pay structure is 100% commission based. So I wasn’t making any money on days I didn’t make a sale.
I joined the company thinking it couldn’t be as bad as a pyramid scheme. However, I can confidently say USHEALTH Advisors exploits you just as bad, if not worse, than a pyramid scheme.
I don’t want other people to go through what I went through without being informed. In this guide, I will dive into USHEALTH Advisors’ business model. This includes a summary of their compensation scheme and how much you can earn as an agent. Read on to get the full scoop on USHEALTH Advisors.
What is USHEALTH Advisors?
USHEALTH Advisors is the marketing division for USHEALTH Group, Inc. Its agents sell health coverage and supplementary products. These are underwritten by Freedom Life Insurance Company of America and National Foundation Life Insurance Company.
USHEALTH Advisors focuses on selling these health insurance plans to individuals, self-employed persons, and small businesses. These insurance plans include:
- PremierAdvantage
- PremierChoice
- SecureAdvantage
- HealthAccess II
- MedGuard
- Accident Protector
- IncomeProtector
- LifeProtector
- SecureDental
- PremierVision
Each of the above plans offers a different type of coverage. For example, MedGuard offers coverage for critical illnesses. Similarly, SecureDental offers coverage for orthodontic care. As an agent you are expected to market these as affordable health coverage plans.
US Health Advisors has thousands of agents in 35 States. The insurance agency has an annual revenue of around $1.1 billion.
History
US Health Advisors was founded as Security Health Advisors, LLC, in 2009. Its parent company USHEALTH Group, Inc, was founded in 1982.
There isn’t much information available on either company and how they were founded. However, USHEALTH Group was bought out by the Golden Rule Financial Corporation in 2021.
USHEALTH Group is currently based in Fort Worth. The company has the following subsidiaries as of 2022:
- USHEALTH Advisors
- Freedom Life Insurance Company of America
- USHEALTH Administrators, LLC
- NationalCare Marketing Inc
- Pacific Casualty Company, Inc
- USHEALTH Career Agency, Inc
- USHEALTH Funding, Inc
- USHEALTH Academy, Inc
- Foundational Financial Services, Inc
- Small Business Insurance Advisors, Inc
- USHEALTH Direct
US Health Advisors has over 4 million insurance leads as of 2021. Their annual revenue is estimated at around $1.1 billion.
CEO and Staff
USHEALTH Advisors CEO is Troy McQuagge. He was appointed to this position in July 2010.
McQuagge possesses a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Central Florida. He worked for President Agency Marketing Group for a decade before becoming President and CEO of USHEALTH Advisors.
McQuagge was responsible for the company’s strategic growth and profitability. He helped it become the largest captive career sales firm in the under-65 health insurance sector.
USHEALTH Advisors has around 3,000 employees, according to its LinkedIn profile. However, the company hasn’t disclosed how many agents it employs. The above figure likely consist of a combination of agents, managers, and other corporate staff members.
Is US Health Advisors a Pyramid Scheme?
So is USHEALTH Advisors a pyramid scheme? Let’s check the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pyramid scheme definition/
“[A pyramid scheme] is an investment fraud in which new participants’ fees are typically used to pay money to existing participants for recruiting new members.”
Most pyramid schemes have the following traits:
- No genuine products or services are sold;
- Members are promised high returns in a short period of time
- Members are told the business model allows them to make easy money or passive income
- There is no demonstrable revenue generated from retail sales
- Members must make a purchase to sign-up
- The business has a complex commission structure
- The business model places a high emphasis on recruiting
Why US Health Advisors Isn’t a Pyramid Scheme
USHEALTH Advisors isn’t a pyramid scheme because it doesn’t fit most of the criteria mentioned above. Let’s discuss some of these points.
#1. USHEALTH Advisors Sells Offers Genuine Services
USHEALTH Advisors offers insurance plans from the USHEALTH Group. This company is legitimate and has sold insurance to tens of thousands of Americans. These insurance plans include:
- PremierAdvantage
- PremierChoice
- SecureAdvantage
- HealthAccess II
- MedGuard
- Accident Protector
- IncomeProtector
- LifeProtector
- SecureDental
- PremierVision
#2. USHEALTH Advisors Doesn’t Promise High Returns in a Short Period of Time
USHEALTH Advisors doesn’t mention anything about “high returns” on its recruitment page. Therefore, you can’t say you were misled into signing up as an insurance sales agent.
#3. USHEALTH Advisors Doesn’t Say Their Business Model Allows You to Make Easy Money or Passive Income
USHEALTH Advisors states, “we do not place a limit on your earning capacity”. This statement implies you have the potential to earn lots of money. But it doesn’t mention how easy this process will be.
#4. There is Demonstrable Revenue Generated from Products
USHEALTH Advisors hasn’t disclosed exactly where its revenue comes from. However, USHEALTH Group has publicly stated they have sold insurance plans to over 15 million customers.
This means a significant portion of their revenue is from selling insurance.
#5. Members Don’t Need to Make a Purchase to Sign Up
You don’t have to pay to sign up with USHEALTH advisors. But you will need to pay many types of fees when you begin working for them.
#6. The Business Has a Simple Commission Structure
USHEALTH Advisors is upfront about their 100% commissions-based compensation. You get a cut of the revenue you generated from selling insurance along with a few monthly sales bonuses.
#7. US Health Advisors’ Business Model Doesn’t Require You to Recruit New Members
USHEALTH Advisors doesn’t offer any bonuses for recruiting new members. This makes it different from multi-level marketing companies that encourage you to bring in as many people as possible.
Why Do People Think US Health Advisors is a Pyramid Scheme?
So why do people think USHEALTH Advisors is a pyramid scheme? After all, the company doesn’t fit the SEC’s definition described above.
The answer lies in some of the company’s practices. This includes:
#1. Hiring Just About Anyone With an Insurance License
As I mentioned earlier, USHEALTH Advisors will hire just about anyone who signs up. That is, assuming they have an insurance license.
The company wants to bring in as many agents as possible because it creates the potential for more sales. This is similar to what pyramid schemes do.
#2. Charging You for Everything
USHEALTH Advisors asks its agents to pay numerous types of fees.
This includes fees for:
- Renting a cubicle
- Phone access
- Access to the lead generation software you need to make calls.
The lead generation software fees were particularly frustrating because they were variable. It wasn’t uncommon for agents to pay a few hundred dollars per week just to buy some extra leads that never paid off.
All this money goes into the company’s pockets. This gives people the impression that USHEALTH Advisors survives off the payments its agents make.
How Much Money Can You Earn from US Health Advisors?
So how much money can you earn as a USHEALTH Advisors agent? The insurance company hasn’t disclosed how much its agents earn. However, I can come up with a rough estimate using salary postings on Glassdoor.
Glassdoor states USHEALTH Advisors agents earn between $58,000 and $271,000 per year. The average is around $111,000 per year.
This is slightly higher than the $102,000 average salary for insurance agents around the United States. However, placing these two averages side-by-side isn’t fair.
This is because USHEALTH Advisors asks you to work seven days a week and make hundreds of calls per day. So you’re actually putting in far more time and effort than the average insurance agent at other companies does.
For this reason, we could say USHEALTH Advisors pays less than other insurance companies.
How to Earn Income Through USHEALTH Advisors?
USHEALTH Advisors allows you to make money in two ways. These are:
- Commissions from Sales
- Monthly Bonuses
#1. Commissions from Sales
USHEALTH Advisors’ compensation is 100% commission based. You will earn money only if you make a sale.
The company hasn’t publicly disclosed what percentage you get to pocket from each sale. One Glassdoor reviewer states they receive 25% while the rest goes to the company.
#2. Monthly Bonus
USHEALTH Advisors awards a bonus to the agents who make the most sales at the end of each month. According to ZipRecruiter, these bonuses add up to around $35,000 per year.
This source doesn’t mention how many times each agent made the cut and received their monthly bonus. Therefore, we can’t deduce how much the monthly bonus actually is.
3 Key Advantages of Becoming a US Health Advisors Financial Advisor.
Pro #1. Free Training
US Health Advisors offers free weekly training for its employees. Much of this includes going over the company’s insurance plans and how to promote them.
This training is useful for new agents. But it may also help more experienced ones seeking tips to up their game.
Pro #2. No Earnings Cap
As mentioned earlier, there’s no cap on how much you can earn at USHEALTH Advisors. You could potentially earn a lot of money if you’re motivated and have a knack for sales.
3 Key Disadvantages of Becoming a US Health Advisors Member.
Con #1. No Guaranteed Pay
The 100% commissions-based pay structure means you won’t make any money if you don’t make a sale. This can be an issue for new agents who haven’t developed good sales skills yet.
Con #2. Fees, fees, and more fees
As mentioned earlier, you will have to pay lots of fees while working at USHEALTH Advisors. The cubicle fees, phone access fees, and lead generation software fees can really add up.
So you will end up making a loss if your sales for the week are lower than the fees you’re paying.
Con #3. Not-So-Warm Leads
Selling insurance to people is never easy. However, selling insurance to people that have already been approached by other agents from your firm is even tougher.
You’ll be paying several hundred dollars to get new leads, only to find out they have already been approached by other agents. In other cases, you might find a buyer but then learn their health history or background makes them ineligible for the plan they want.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, working for USHEALTH Advisors isn’t a walk in the park. The company’s demanding work schedule and high fees can make being an agent feel downright torturous.
I lasted four months at the company, but I had planned to quit much sooner. I did see many people raking in money from sales. But I also saw how inconsistent their earnings were on a weekly basis.
I remember seeing one of my co-workers spend four hundred dollars on leads. He ended the week without closing a single sale. Stories like this were far too common at USHEALTH Advisors and reaffirmed my decision to quit.
Who Would USHEALTH Advisors Be a Good Fit For?
I’m hesitant to say USHEALTH Advisors would be a good fit for anyone. After all, there are many insurance companies out there that pay better and demand less from you.
Don’t get me wrong. You can certainly sharpen your cold calling skills by making hundreds of calls per day at USHEALTH Advisors. But the high-stress environment will eventually burn you out. This burnout might turn you off the notion of working in the insurance industry entirely.
USHEALTH Advisors isn’t a pyramid scheme. But it is a call center disguised as an insurance company. Try this income idea if you want to put your sales skills to the ultimate test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does USHEALTH Advisors overwork its agents?
USHEALTH Advisors expects you to make hundreds of calls per day and work seven days a week. Most people would consider this workload unreasonable.
Can You Lose Money working at USHEALTH Advisors?
You can lose money working as a USHEALTH Advisors agent. This is because you will need to pay various fees without any guarantee you will make any sales.
Does USHEALTH Advisors ask you to recruit people?
USHEALTH Advisors doesn’t encourage you to recruit people. Instead, they would like you to focus on calling as many customers as possible.
This makes them different from multi-level marketing companies. But their other practices could be considered just as exploitative.
Sources
- USHA Recruitment Page: Join Our Team
- USHEALTH Group Products: Products
- USHEALTH Advisors Annual Revenue: USHEALTH Advisors Revenue and Competitors
- USHEALTH Advisors History: USHEALTH Advisors L.L.C. Continues to Expand its Market Reach in Texas
- USHEALTH Group Bought By Golden Rule Financial Corporation: Golden-Rule-Financial-Corp-v-Shareholder-Representative-Services
- Troy McQuagge Background: Troy McQuagge LinkedIn Profile
- USHEALTH Advisors LinkedIn: USHEALTH Advisors LinkedIn
- USHEALTH Advisors Agent Salary: Salary Details for a Financial Advisor at USHEALTH Advisors
- Average Insurance Agent Salary in United States: How much does an Insurance Agent make?
- USHEALTH Advisor Bonuses: What is the Bonus Pay by Department at USHEALTH Advisors?
