Today the FCC issued an important warning to Seniors, asking them to be vigilant when answering the phone. Identity thieves are targeting seniors with robocalls pretending to be affiliated with Medicare. They are “spoofing” the phone number that shows up on caller ids, both to hide their identity, and to appear credible to the person answering the phone. You can no longer trust the numbers you see on your caller id. Unfortunately, scammers have technology that can make the number that appears on your caller id show up as anything they want. The thieves are out to steal Medicare card numbers. Previously, Medicare identified beneficiaries by their Social Security Numbers, but due to soaring cases of identity theft, Medicare issued Medicare Beneficiary Identification numbers in place of Social Security Numbers.
You should protect your Medicare Beneficiary ID number as if it were a credit card number.
What to Look Out For
The FCC advises that most of these scams are taking place via outbound phone calls. The scammers lead in with chatty conversation and once they have gained your trust, they transition to asking things like:
We need you to confirm the numbers on your new Medicare card to activate it.
or
You were sent the old paper version and there’s a new plastic version.
There are NO plastic Medicare cards. Additionally, Medicare will never call you uninvited and ask for your personal information. Calls requesting health insurance information should not be trusted.
How to Avoid Being Scammed
Because there are many legitimate third party Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplemental plan providers – it is possible that you may receive a legitimate follow-up call. In order to protect yourself, tell the agent you are speaking to that you would rather call in directly due to the amount of scams going around. If you have an existing relationship with the company – call the number printed on your statement. If you have been shopping for a Supplemental Medicare plan, visit the plan provider’s website directly and call the number from there directly.
How to Report a Medicare Scam
If someone contacts you attempting to gain access to your Medicare Beneficiary Number, asks you for money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits if you don’t cooperate, Call 1-800-633-4227 (1-800-MEDICARE) or visit medicare.gov/fraud to file a report. Additionally, you can file a complaint with the FCC.
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