Senior News Line: Avoiding Medicare fraud

Medicare is a pot of gold for scammers. There is a lot of money to be made by those who successfully commit fraud against seniors. You, however, can stop them in their tracks by not falling for the scams.

Genetic testing is a hot topic for those who want to be screened for a variety of potential illnesses. If you get a call offering genetic testing, or even at a booth at a senior fair, don’t believe the scammer who says that Medicare will pay for it and that all you need to do is provide your Medicare number. Never give that number out.

The only legitimate way Medicare will pay for genetic testing is if your doctor thinks it’s medically necessary and orders it.

Even your medical provider shouldn’t be completely trusted. When you receive your Medicare Summary Notice showing what was billed and what Medicare paid, look closely at it.

Check the dates and services to be sure that you really did receive those services. While errors could be honest mistakes, maybe they’re not.

Call your provider and ask them to send you an itemized bill so you can see how they came up with their numbers and to send a corrected bill to Medicare. If they don’t, or if you suspect fraud, report it. Call Medicare at 800-MEDICARE, or 800-633-4227.

To learn more, see the Senior Medicare Patrol — 877-808-2468 — whose job is to ferret out Medicare fraud. Look for them at smpresource.org. Don’t miss the “Consequences to Beneficiaries” section of the website.

The health impacts of fraud are scary: misinformation in our files, incorrect lab results and more. If you want to talk to a SMP representative, see the “Find Help in Your State” button.

For an overview of the types of fraud against seniors, see https://tinyurl.com/Fraud-Materials. You’ll be surprised how many there are.