|
Most
health care providers are honest and are providing the best care
they can, but the small number who aren't find ways to steal billions
of dollars from the health care system each year. Even more is lost
to errors in billing that are never found. Below you will find current
scams that are happening right here in Iowa.
 |
 Information About the One Time $250 Rebate Checks Coming to Medicare Beneficiaries Who Experience the Coverage Gap
in Their Medicare Prescription Drug Plan (June, 2010)
Department of Health & Human Services estimates that 4 million persons nationwide may be eligible for this rebate. (The estimate for Iowa is about 90,000 persons.) The first checks are to be mailed June 10, 2010, to approximately 80,000 persons nationwide. And for the remainder of the year, the checks will be mailed on a flow basis with the final checks delivered by March, 2011.
These checks are paid ONE TIME to those who are eligible and are only for this year, 2010. The reason there is a March, 2011 payment is that there is a delay between when the person meets the eligibility requirements and when the check is mailed.
The persons who may be eligible for this rebate do not have to do anything in order to receive the check.
• No papers to file
• No phone calls to answer
• No person knocking at their door
• No arrangements to make for direct deposit option
The only method of payment is a mailed, paper check – no direct deposit. The envelope will have the Dept. of Health and Human Services logo and state "Medicare Part D." For persons in Iowa, the return address will be from Wisconsin. We are waiting to hear what return address will show on checks mailed to other states.
Beneficiaries who have questions should call the toll-free number for Medicare at 1-800-633-4227. If you receive a suspcious contact from someone you think is trying to run a scam, please report to Senior Medicare Patrol at 1-800-423-2449 and we will report to federal officials.
Posted: 06/10/2010
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Wants Your Help to Stop “Medical Discount Card” Fraud
The FTC has asked for the help of SMP around the country, to warn seniors about possible scams. “Medical Discount Cards” are often misleading at least, if not outright scams. Advertisements are seen on television or the Internet, or on faxes and e-mails, or by recorded phone calls and radio ads. They claim these discount cards can be used at your doctor or pharmacy to help supplement your Medicare. In fact, very few if any doctors or pharmacies accept these discount cards and you’ve thrown good money away, buying into these programs. (You have to pay a fee, before the discount card is sent to you – a discount card that is NO GOOD!)
Please report any examples to us at SMP and we’ll turn over the information to the FTC. If you’ve actually been a victim of this type of scam, please tell us about your experience.
Posted: 01/11/2010
If You Receive your Home Medical Supplies by Mail – Listen Up!
A northeast Iowa woman who receives her diabetes testing supplies by mail, received a mysterious package from the company. The box contained some equipment she’d never seen before. She called the company to ask what it was and why they sent it. The company told her it was to help with her pain and that her doctor had ordered it for her. This was not true. She doesn’t need help with pain problems and so she had never talked to her doctor about such a thing. She called Medicare and arranged to have the box returned to the company.
Medical supply companies are not supposed to send you anything you didn’t discuss with your doctor and ask for. If this happens to you, you can ask Medicare for help with returning the package or you can call SMP for help, at 1-800-423-2449.
Posted: 01/11/2010
|
|
