{"id":11429,"date":"2014-09-30T12:14:00","date_gmt":"2014-09-30T19:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.freeway.com\/?p=7196"},"modified":"2014-09-30T12:14:00","modified_gmt":"2014-09-30T19:14:00","slug":"dont-be-a-victim-of-a-medicare-scam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.freeway.com\/blog\/health-insurance-blog\/dont-be-a-victim-of-a-medicare-scam\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t Be a Victim of a Medicare Scam"},"content":{"rendered":"

Medicare fraud costs Medicare and Medicaid billions of dollars each year. The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association<\/a> says losses total about $60 billion a year \u2013 estimated to be 3 percent to 10 percent of annual health care costs.<\/p>\n

Safeguarding your personal information is the best strategy to combat health care fraud and abuse. That\u2019s where Senior Medicare Patrols<\/a> (SMPs) come in. SMPs are groups of highly trained volunteers who teach others about health care fraud. SMP volunteers show Medicare and Medicaid recipients how to protect against, detect, and report fraud. SMPs are grant-funded projects of the federal U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL).<\/p>\n

According to SMPs, about 250,000 Medicare beneficiaries have had their medical identity compromised through stolen or misused Medicare numbers, hitting seniors with higher copayments for services that either were not received or were not medically necessary.<\/p>\n

Remember, you must keep your Medicare number private \u2013 it\u2019s like a credit card. With it, someone can steal your medical identity and obtain benefits.<\/p>\n

Below are some of the scams you need to be aware of.<\/p>\n

Common Scams and Identity Theft<\/h3>\n

According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services<\/a>, be suspicious of doctors, health care providers, or suppliers who*:<\/p>\n