Over the last few days, we have received multiple calls from clients and people joining Medicare about suspicious Medicare calls they are receiving.
Please beware!
The people reporting these scam-like situations say they have been contacted by individuals claiming to be agents with insurance companies or “Medicare assistance”. Each claim they want to explain the changes in Medicare to beneficiaries.
Besides the new Medicare cards being issued because Social Security numbers are being removed from the claimant number for security, THERE ARE NO MAJOR CHANGES TO MEDICARE.
Here’s what you need to know:
- Insurance agents are not allowed to reach out to you without permission directly from you.
- Your current insurance company will not call offering to lower your premiums.
- Medicare will never call you unless you ask for a return call or write them a letter.
Please remember if you get a call like this, do not give them any personal information!
Our best advice to manage scam call risk is to not answer phone calls from unfamiliar callers.
However, if you find yourself in a situation with a potential Medicare scam, here are some things to keep in mind:
DO:
Get their name
Get the company they are with
Write down the number they are calling from
Ask probing questions to get more details or to legitimize the call
Report it to us or Medicare so it can investigated
DON’T:
Give them any personal information
Schedule a meeting or follow up call
Give them any kind of permissions
Insurance agents are violating laws and we want to know about these kinds of calls to make all our members aware. Please send us an email at support@mymedicarecoach.com describing your call or situation or call us at 785-537-6225 if you need help determining if the call you received was legitimate.
We will be looking into the situations we hear about from our members and will report any unethical behavior or violations.
Please share this information with any friends and family that you feel should be aware of these suspicious calls!
