“But he sounded so official!” “He said he needed my Medicare and Social Security numbers to confirm my enrollment.”
The DC Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) is warning residents to be on the alert for open enrollment scams. Did you know that October 15 to December 7 is when you can make changes to your Medicare health and Part D prescription drug plans? Scammers do, and they’ve waited all year to take advantage of this unique opportunity to steal your personal information and money. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, Medicare fraud and medical identity theft can cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year.
To Scam Medicare Plan Enrollees, Fraudsters Will:
- Send you an official-looking letter—like one you’d expect to receive from the Internal Revenue Service—saying you must act immediately to save thousands of dollars in premiums by switching from your current Medicare health plan to theirs.
- Send you an unsolicited email, SMS text message, or social media account message urging you to click on a link or to call a telephone number to confirm your eligibility to join their Medicare health plan.
- Call you in a very official tone saying they are from Medicare and that you must give them your personal information to confirm eligibility under your current Medicare plan.
What You Should Know
- Medicare won’t contact you out of the blue and request your home address, date of birth, Medicare number, Social Security number, credit card, debit card, or financial account information.
- If an unknown individual calls you saying they are from Medicare and they request your personal information, hang up.
- If an unknown person sends you an email, SMS text message, or social media message urging you to change your Medicare health plan, delete the message.
- If an official-looking letter arrives in your mailbox urging you to act immediately to save thousands of dollars in annual Medicare premiums, toss the letter in the trash.
- Medicare will not contact you by any of the above methods to request your personal information. If you are still unsure whether the inquiry is legitimate, call 1(800) MEDICARE.
- Never click on any links you receive in a text message or email from someone you do not personally know. Even if you know the sender, be aware that scammers try to trick you into clicking on links or opening attachments by spoofing the email address of someone you know. When you click on the link or open the attachment, the scammer can load malware containing viruses and ransomware onto your device.
- If you are suspicious about the true identity of the person or company who emailed or texted you, independently verify it by using a search engine. Find the official contact information for that person or company and ask them whether they sent you the email or text message in question.
Report Fraud
If you believe you have been the victim of a Medicare open enrollment scam, contact the DISB Enforcement and Consumer Protection Division at (202) 727-8000. You can also file a complaint at medicare.gov or call 1(800) MEDICARE (1(800) 633-4227). You may also contact the fraud hotline of HHS’ Office of the Inspector General at 1(800) HHS-TIPS (1(800) 447-8477).