Summary
Medicare scams have increased by 40% this year, targeting seniors with fake calls claiming to be from health care providers. These scams aim to steal Medicare numbers, leading to false service charges and potential issues with real medical care.
Key Facts
- Medicare scams have risen by 40% compared to last year, according to the Better Business Bureau.
- Scams involve fraudsters calling seniors, pretending to be from Medicare or health care providers.
- Providing information like a Medicare number to scammers can lead to fake billing for unreceived services.
- Scammers may pretend to offer new benefits or medical equipment to get personal data.
- The open enrollment period from October 15 to December sees an increase in scam calls.
- Medicare seldom calls recipients directly, typically communicating through mail.
- Fraudsters use personal data from the dark web to sound legitimate and trick seniors.
- Seniors are advised to monitor Medicare statements and avoid giving personal info over phone calls from unknown numbers.
