Q: I got a call from a local number and the caller stated that my doctor’s office had asked them to call me about receiving a knee brace that would be paid for by Medicare. I haven’t seen that doctor for nearly a year so I was sure it was a scam, but it is alarming they knew I have had knee problems.
A: Unfortunately, caller ID spoofing is a common practice nowadays, allowing scammers to use software to hijack phone numbers so that it appears a caller is local. Often the best practice is to let such calls go to voicemail and screen your messages to see which calls are legitimate to receive a return call.
Over the last few years, there have been several durable medical equipment scams in which phone calls, letters, postcards, and TV ads promote items, such as back and knee braces, as being “free to Medicare recipients.” These scams are usually aimed at getting your personal information, including your Medicare number, or designed to defraud the Medicare system by billing for products that you don’t really need. Also on the rise are scams involving urinary catheters, glucose monitoring supplies, and COVID test kits. Remember, you never have to pay for equipment or testing supplies that were fraudulently mailed to you.
Keep in mind, too, that Medicare fraud, errors, and abuse affect everyone! Each year, Medicare loses billions of taxpayer dollars to improper claims. This puts the Medicare trust fund at risk for everyone and affects the future of the Medicare program. Medicare fraud, errors, and abuse also affect current Medicare beneficiaries because they result in higher Medicare premiums and waste money that could be used to increase and improve health care services.
To protect against fraud and scams, carefully read your Medicare Summary Notice (MSN.) The MSN, which Medicare sends out every three months, summarizes all your services or supplies which providers and suppliers billed to Medicare during the 3-month period, what Medicare paid, and the maximum amount you may owe the provider. Be sure to look for unknown doctor names, changes in quantities of items you already receive for a medical condition, and/or supplies for conditions you don’t have. If anything like this happens, be sure to call your insurance plan to inform them that there are fraudulent charges. You should also report this to 1-800-MEDICARE. Finally, you can inform the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Learn more about these issues at www.medicare.gov/fraud.
Q: My head is spinning at all the materials we are getting about Medicare plans. How do we sort out the pertinent information we need from all the mailings, ads, and promotions?
A: Over-aggressive marketing of Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage plans has come under scrutiny over the last couple of years, which is a good thing for Medicare beneficiaries. On October 18, 2023, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing entitled “Medicare Advantage Annual Enrollment: Cracking Down on Deceptive Practices and Improving Senior Experiences.” This hearing was held almost a year after the Committee issued a report entitled Deceptive Marketing Practices Flourish in Medicare Advantage. According to the Center for Medicare Advocacy, the November 2022 report found evidence “that beneficiaries are being inundated with aggressive marketing tactics as well as false and misleading information.” Special attention is being given to how taxpayer dollars are being used for marketing, whether “marketing middlemen” and lead-generating companies should be reformed or eliminated, and if there are systemic problems, that have created financial incentives which are driving
overzealous and misleading marketing, which also need to be addressed. While policymakers are aware of the problems and some oversight actions have been set in place, it is definitely a situation of buyer beware when looking into both Part D plans and Medicare Advantage plans.
As always, Area Agency on Aging (AAA) and the Michigan Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program (MMAP) are here to help with free, unbiased, and confidential assistance comparing Medicare Advantage plans and Part D drug plan options. Medicare Open Enrollment is happening now to December 7, 2023. In most cases this is the only time you can pick a new Medicare Advantage or Part D plan. Call 800-803-7174 or go to our website at areaagencyonaging.org/medicare-medicaid for more information.
Sara Duris is community information liaison of Region IV Area Agency on Aging in Southwest Michigan. Questions on age or independence services? Call the Info-Line for Aging & Disability at 800-654-2810 or visit areaagencyonaging.org. The Generations column appears each weekend in The Herald-Palladium.