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How to avoid falling victim to Medicare fraud
How to avoid falling victim to Medicare fraud

Yahoo

time03-06-2025

  • General
  • Yahoo

How to avoid falling victim to Medicare fraud

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Monday is the start of Medicare Fraud Prevention Week, which aims to educate recipients so they don't fall victim. Scammers who target federally funded health care programs can cost taxpayers billions of dollars and put beneficiaries at risk. 'The most important thing that we tell individuals is make sure that you guard your Medicare card,' said Christine Anderson, the health information manager for the R.I. Office of Healthy Aging. She urges Medicare recipients to treat their insurance cards like they would their Social Security cards and not carry them around. RELATED: Some Medicare Advantage patients in RI may lose coverage at Brown Health hospitals According to Anderson, bad actors will get a hold of someone's Medicare information and use it to bill the program for services or equipment that is not needed. She said fraudsters will call a recipient out of the blue and pretend to be from Medicare or the Social Security Administration. 'They usually contact you and say they already have your information and they are calling you to verify your information and all the caller has to do is just verify that,' she explained. If the recipient provides that information to the caller — their Medicare number is compromised. Aside from not giving out personal details over the phone, Anderson recommends that recipients review their monthly or quarterly bills to make sure the services listed are correct. 'We teach Medicare beneficiaries to review those statements that they receive just to make sure that all the charges on there are accurate,' she said. If you believe that you or someone you know has fallen victim to Medicare fraud, first call your doctor, then contact the R.I. Office of Healthy Aging at (401) 462-3000. MORE: What to do if Brown Health, UnitedHealthcare don't strike a deal Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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