We’ve received another report of a Medicare telephone scam this morning. Please alert your clients to never give out personal information, including their Medicare and bank account numbers, over the phone to someone they don’t know.
A woman in Chico called her local HICAP/Senior Medicare Patrol office to report a call from someone claiming to be “verifying Medicare information”. The caller said he was recording the conversation and asked to verify the client’s name, address, and bank account number, including her last check number. He then said she could ask questions at the end of the call. Yet when she tried, he hung up.
This woman then realized she made a terrible mistake by giving out her information, and immediately went to her bank to close/change accounts, and then called her local SMP office to report.
We and other SMP offices around the country have received other similar reports. Please warn your clients and again remind them to protect their personal information.
See Medicare Fraud for more info on common scams and how to detect and prevent them.
Thank you, and Merry Solstice!!