Illinois SMP Program Fraud Alerts

 

The Illinois SMP Program sends email Fraud Alerts every Friday. These alerts contain fraud-related news articles, information about current scams in Illinois or other parts of the United States, and useful healthcare or fraud-related resources. If you would like to be added to the Illinois SMP Fraud Alert email list, please contact:

Erin Weir, Healthcare Consumer Protection Coordinator

Phone: (800)699-9043, (708)383-0258

TTY: (708)524-1653

Fax: (708)524-0870

erin.weir@ageoptions.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Illinois SMP Fraud Alert - March 26, 2010

Dear SMP readers,

Today’s Fraud Alert contains a lot of information, but I encourage you to read through as much as possible for important scam warnings and information. The Fraud in the News section contains a very useful video from this morning’s Today Show on the Grandparents Scam, as well as an interview with William Kresse of St. Xavier University regarding the fraud provisions in the new health reform legislation.

                                                              
Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

Erin Weir, MSW, LSW, Healthcare Consumer Protection Coordinator

AgeOptions

1048 Lake Street, Suite 300

Oak Park, IL 60301

phone (708)383-0258 fax (708)524-0870

erin.weir@ageoptions.org

ageoptions.org

====================

Please share this Fraud Alert with colleagues, consumers, or other professionals in your area. If you have any questions about the Illinois SMP program, or to receive these Fraud Alerts directly, please contact Erin Weir, Healthcare Consumer Protection Coordinator at AgeOptions.

What you will find in this week’s Fraud Alert

• Insurance Agents in Missouri Claim to Represent “ObamaCare”
• Census Scams & Current Census Information
• Warning from CastleRock Security
• National Futures Association & AARP Partner in Fraud Presentation
• Caller ID Spoofing
• Medicare Enrollment Now Available Online
• How to File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
• Fraud in the News

 

Insurance Agents in Missouri Claim to Represent “ObamaCare”

The Missouri SMP program received a report from the Missouri Medicaid office stating that residents in St. Charles, MO report receiving door-to-door visits from insurance agents. The agents told residents that they are “with ObamaCare” and used that guise to try to sell insurance policies.  If anyone receives visits or phone calls like this, please report the incident to the Illinois SMP program at (800)699-9043.

 

Census Scams & Current Census Information

One of our SMP volunteers reported receiving a phone call stating “if you are diabetic and want to be counted, press 1…” This call is NOT from the Census, and it may be a scam.

MSN also ran a helpful news article this week on census scams:
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Banking/FinancialPrivacy/4-census-scams-that-may-come-your-way.aspx

Census forms have been mailed already, so all Illinois residents should be receiving them. The Census form asks 10 questions, and the person can mail it back. It does not require the sharing of Social Security numbers, Medicare numbers, or any other personal information.  For information about current response rates to the Census or to find an assistance center that can help people in your area complete their census forms, visit the 2010 census website:

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/take10map/.

(To find an assistance center, click on “Find a Questionnaire Assistance Center” on the right side of the screen.)

Warning from CastleRock Security

An Illinois SMP volunteer in Rock Island, Illinois recently received a notice from CastleRock Security stating that they have received reports of sales agents going door-to-door and using deceptive sales practices to lure people into doing business with them. These agents are apparently claiming to be associated with CastleRock, but are not. CastleRock’s warning stated that if anyone receives a door to door visit from someone claiming to be associated with CastleRock, the resident should turn the person away, and never give them any personal information (including security alarm codes).

National Futures Association & AARP Partner in Fraud Presentation

The National Futures Association will be partnering with AARP to give a presentation on investment and consumer fraud during Money Smart Week. The presentation will be Tuesday, April 20 at 12:00 p.m. at the Harold Washington Library (Chicago Authors Room, 7th floor) in downtown Chicago. The National Futures Association will discuss investment fraud, and a representative from AARP will present the AARP Fraud Fighters Program. See the flyer attached to this email for more information about this presentation. The AARP Fraud Fighters program website also contains information about that program, as well as a variety of resources on consumer fraud and scams:

http://www.aarpfraudfighters.org/

flyer for AARP/NFA presentation

 

Caller ID Spoofing

An AgeOptions staff member recently received a marketing phone call telling her to press “1” to stop receiving calls. After receiving the phone call numerous times, she tried calling the number that showed up on her caller ID to ask the caller to stop contacting her. She found that the phone number on her caller ID was in fact not the caller at all – it was an individual who had no idea his phone number was being used. It seems that this caller was using a caller ID spoofer – a device used to disguise where a call is coming from, and in some cases, make a call appear to be coming from a particular place.

Here are a couple of news articles about caller ID spoofing:

http://www.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2009/09/ spoofing_scams_make_caller_id.html

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/02/05/the-rise-of-caller-id-spoofing/tab/article/

It is important for consumers to realize that a caller ID is not a foolproof tool for determining the origin of a phone call. As a result, it is important to refrain from giving out personal information to anyone over the phone unless YOU make the call!

Medicare Enrollment Now Available Online

People who wish to enroll in Medicare when they are not yet receiving Social Security benefits can now apply online. The Social Security website has information about this new online feature: http://www.socialsecurity.gov/medicareonly/

 

How to File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission

The Federal Trade Commission has a video on their website that shows consumers how to file a complaint: http://ftc.gov/multimedia/video/scam-watch/file-a-complaint.shtm

 

====================

Fraud In The News

The following are current news articles about health care and fraud issues.

1. VIDEO: “Grandparents Scam Targets Seniors” (a great video from this morning’s Today Show):

   http://www.nbc.com/news-sports/today-show/grandparents-scam-targets-seniors/

2. VIDEO: “Health Care Reform Law to Spend Millions to Fight Fraud” (a news interview on Fox Chicago news with William Kresse, Director of Study of Fraud and Corruption from St. Xavier University:
   

   
   Intro: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/money/20100324-medicare-health-care-fraud
   Interview: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/news/20100324-bill-kresse-medicare-fraud

3. “Medicare Fraud Costs Taxpayers More than $60 Billion Each Year” (ABCNews Nightline story on Medicare Fraud): http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/medicare-fraud-costs-taxpayers-60-billion-year/story?id=10126555&page=1
   
   
4. “Tread Lightly When Offered Free Shoes” (a helpful article about diabetic shoe scams) http://lacanadaonline.com/articles/2010/03/08/society/lso-seniorliving304.txt
   
   
5. “Medicare Fraudster Gets Life Term For Killing Cousin”: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/26/1548116/fraudster-gets-life-term-for-killing.html
   
   
6. “LA Man Gets 9 Years for $1M Medicare Fraud”:
   

   http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=7351058

7. “AARP Scam Alert: Are You a Secret Spammer?”
   
   
8. “Rental & Real Estate Scams” (Warning from Internet Crime Complaint Center): http://www.ic3.gov/media/2010/100310.aspx
   
   
9. “Facebook Warns of New Email Scam”: http://mashable.com/2010/03/19/facebook-email-scam/
   
   
   =======

Fraud Alerts contain information about current scams taking place in Illinois, announcements and updates about programs or services related to health care and/or fraud protection, and links to news articles about health care and fraud topics. Please forward any recommendations or announcements that you would like to be included in a future Fraud Alert to erin.weir@ageoptions.org.

AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging of Suburban Cook County, is committed to improving the quality of life and maintaining the dignity of older adults and those who care about them – through leadership and support, community partnerships, comprehensive services, accurate information and powerful advocacy.

====================

Confidentiality notice: This email and any files or attachments transmitted with it are confidential and may be protected by legal privilege. This email is intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom this email is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, or distribution or copying of this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please notify the sender immediately by email and delete this email from your system.