Health insurance, Open Enrollment and Medicare scams
A call or ad offering cheap health coverage or Medicare benefits, asking for your Medicare number or a fee.
Could you spot it?
3 quick examples. Decide scam or legit for each.
How it works
During Open Enrollment, scammers pose as government agents or insurance navigators. They offer plans that seem cheap, “free” braces or test kits, or a new Medicare card, and ask for your Medicare or Social Security number, or an enrollment fee.
Some sell discount plans that aren't insurance at all. Your Medicare number can be used to bill for things you never got.
Red flags
- An unexpected call about your Medicare or health coverage.
- A request for your Medicare or Social Security number to “verify” you.
- Offers that end today, or plans that sound too cheap.
- A fee to get a new card or to enroll.
What it looks like
It's November, during Medicare open enrollment. Your phone rings.
Caller: Hi, I'm calling from Medicare benefits services. Everyone is getting new plastic Medicare cards with a chip this year, and yours is ready to ship.
Caller: I just need to verify your Medicare number and your date of birth to activate it. There's also a one-time $49 card fee, which I can take today with a debit card.
The tells:
- An unexpected call about your Medicare card.
- Asking for your Medicare number.
- A fee for a Medicare card, which is free.
A training example written for this site. Names, numbers and links are made up, and links are disabled.
What to do
- Use the official marketplace website or the number on your Medicare card.
- Never give your Medicare number to someone who called you.
- Treat your Medicare number like a credit card.
If you already paid or shared information
- Contact the company you used to pay (your bank, card company, gift card company, payment app or wire service) right away and ask them to reverse the payment.
- If you shared a password, change it now and turn on two-factor authentication.
- If you gave out your Social Security number or other ID details, go to IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan.
- Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. For scams that happened online, you can also report to the FBI at ic3.gov.
From FTC: What to do if you were scammed.
Latest alerts about this scam
- FTC ·What to know ahead of Open Enrollment to avoid health insurance scams
Health insurance scams happen year-round, but they pick up during Open Enrollment for Medicare and the Marketplace. If you’re looking to find a new plan, you might search online. But before you click on a search result, remember: scammers and dishonest businesses sometimes pay to appear at the top.
- FTC ·Searching for health insurance? Keep scrolling to avoid government impersonators
When you search online, do you click the first result you see? That habit could cost you — especially if you’re searching for health insurance or government healthcare programs.
Sources
- FTC: What to know ahead of Open Enrollment to avoid health insurance scams
- FTC: Spot health insurance scams
- FTC: Your Medicare number is valuable. Protect it
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