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Identity Theft Scheme for Medicare Patients

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Contents

Identity theft targets Medicare customers

Seniors enrolling in new plan targeted

The Federal government’s new Medicare prescription drug plan is quite complicated, as many senior citizens have recently discovered. Adding to the problems associated with the plan is the threat of identity theft, as some unscrupulous crooks are taking advantage of the plan’s confusion to steal personal information.

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identity theft crisis victim

Medicare’s new drug program lures identity thieves

The new prescription drug plan that Congress approved in 2005 was supposed to address a growing problem among senior citizens - how to buy prescription drugs affordably. The passage of the program was controversial, not least because it is going to be very expensive. Even worse is the fact that the program is so complicated that few eligible seniors have any idea as to how they can best benefit from the plan.

The short version is that eligible senior citizens may join a government-managed plan or any one of a number of government-approved plans that are managed by private companies. Each plan has its own rules, costs, and eligibility requirements, and many seniors are scratching their heads in bewilderment some six months after enrollment began.

Some criminal elements have decided that this is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the situation in order to steal personal information in order to participate in identity theft. Criminals are calling senior citizens and are presenting themselves as agents of companies that can “assist” seniors in enrolling in the plan that is best for them. As part of this “assistance”, the crooks require personal information from the people they are calling. This information may consist of names, addresses, Social Security numbers and even credit card numbers. These crooks will take all the information they can get, and this is just the latest financial scam that targets senior citizens.

Of course, they aren’t actually offering any assistance; they are merely stealing the personal information so that they can use it to take out loans or credit cards in the names of their victims. It’s just another identity theft scam, and it’s one that is working very well, according to the Better Business Bureau.

This scam is easy to avoid; just follow the usual rules about giving your personal information to strangers. Here are some additional tips:

  • The government should have mailed a guide to the new Medicare program to you. Entitled, “Medicare & You 2006”, this guide will outline which plans are available in your area.
  • No authorized provider will contact you via e-mail. Any attempt to do so may be considered a scam.
  • Providers may call by phone, but they are expected to abide by the national Do Not Call registry. If you are listed and someone calls anyway, you should be suspicious.
  • Should someone call you offering assistance with the Medicare program, you should request that they send their information by mail. 
  • As always, do not ever give a stranger your personal or financial information over the phone or by e-mail.

The new prescription drug program is complicated enough without senior citizens having it made worse by having to deal with identity thieves. If you have any further questions about the program, you can find answers at the Medicare Website at http://www.medicare.gov or by calling them at 800-633-4227

 

 

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