Suspect A Health Care Scam?|Healthcare Tech Outlook Magazine
If you see a headline one day, you can be sure a related scam will follow soon after. With the economic Care Act in the news, scammers are on the prowl, calling, emailing, sending letters and texts, trying to get your money — and our personal and financial data. Scammers know we have many questions about the new Health Insurance Marketplace, and they’re ready to take advantage of that to mislead you.
Some people have contacted the civil. Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, about health care scams they’ve seen so far. Here’s what those scams look like — and what we can do about them.
Charging you for help getting new insurance
Medicare cards
Medical discount scams
Insurance agents
“I can help you. Really.”
“I’m from the government.”
Report any scams you see
Charging you for help getting new insurance
Someone contacts you, offering to help you navigate the Health Insurance Marketplace for a fee — or saying that you need a new health insurance card now or you’ll have to pay the fine. Regardless of the set-up, their only target is to get your bank account or credit card details.
Don’t give your bank details. The people who offer legal help with the Health Insurance Marketplace — sometimes called Navigators or Assisters — cannot charge you. You do not have to pay them. What’s more, you don’t need to buy a particular insurance card or pay any fine for not buying one, either — bottom line: Never give your money or bank details or any information to anyone who contacts you about health insurance.
Medicare cards
If any unknown person tells you, you need a new Medicare card because of “Obamacare.” They inform you that you’ll lose Medicare coverage if you don’t pay a fee for the new Medicare card or give them your Social Security number and bank account or credit card number.
Not true. The Affordable Care Act doesn’t say you need a new Medicare card or another health insurance card. Nor does the law say you’ll lose Medicare coverage. Don’t give your personal or financial data to anyone who contacts you. When you are in doubt, call 1–800-MEDICARE before giving anyone your money or any information.
Medical discount scams
Someone contacts you, offering you a scheme which is discounts on health services and products. They might say the discount plan will save you money and that it meets the minimum coverage required under “Obamacare,” so you won’t have to pay the fine or look at other plans.
Medical discount plans are not health insurance. Sometimes, medical discount plans illegally pretend to be insurance. Ask specific questions, and don’t pay money until you read the terms and conditions. Your state insurance commissioner’s office can tell you if a health plan is an insurance. Most medical discount plans are membership in a “club” that offers reduced prices from individual doctors, certain pharmacies, and some procedures. Some medical discount plans provide legal discounts, but others are scams that don’t deliver on the medical services promised. Others are attempts to get your personal or financial information, so the scammer can use it to commit scams.
Insurance agents
Someone claiming to be an insurance agent gets in touch to say you should “act now” to get your new insurance. They may promise to bring you a special deal or help you avoid a fine. Or they might say they can help you avoid losing access to your current doctors under Medicare — unless you sign up for a Medicare Advantage Plan.
Not true. If you have Medicare, the open enrollment for Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage Plans stays the same: October 15 — December 7, 2013. You don’t have to do anything differently because of the Affordable Care Act. While some insurance agents can help you with your application through the Health Insurance Marketplace, don’t give your data or pay any money to someone who contacts you.
“I can help you. Really.”
Someone contacts you, offering to help you navigate the Health Insurance Marketplace. There are trained people who can help. But experts expect scammers to wade in here, too. So
First, see what they do. The helpers might be called navigators, assistors, counselors, connectors, or something similar. The most important thing is what they do. The official helpers will try to help you find the plan that serves you best. If you want, they might help you get signed up through HealthCare.gov. They will not attempt to sell you a particular program or ask for money to help you. If someone does that, chances are they’re not an officially trained helper.
“I’m from the government.”
No. They’re not. The government will not call you about your health insurance, and no one from the government will ask you to verify your Social Security number or bank details. Some government agencies might send you a letter (for example, Medicare and the IRS), but they will never ask you to give them money or give your credit card number. If someone calls, emails, or texts and says they’re from the government and asked you for money or bank details and any kind kinds of fact, then it’s a scam.
You can report any scams you see
Call 1–877-FTC-HELP (1–877–382–4357) or go to ftc.gov/complaint. Your reports give the FTC the information it needs to launch investigations and put scammers out of business.
If you’re shopping in the Health Insurance Marketplace, do it at HealthCare.gov. People who try to sign you up elsewhere just might be scamming you.
