Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Allen Kerr offers tips to senior citizens to defend themselves against scams during the Medicare Open Enrollment period that runs through Dec. 7.
“I urge anyone with questions about their, or a family member’s, Medicare options to contact the Insurance Department’s Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) staff in order to get the best information they can from a trusted, local source,” Kerr said in a news release.
Kerr pointed to some common scams that target seniors during the open enrollment period:
• A caller says you must join their prescription plan or you’ll lose your Medicare coverage. Don’t believe it! Medicare’s prescription drug plan (Medicare Part D) is voluntary and does not affect your Medicare coverage.
• Someone calls or emails claiming they need your Medicare number to update your account, get a new card, or send Medicare benefit information. This is a scam. If you need help with Medicare, contact the Arkansas SHIIP program at 1-800-224-6330, call 1-800-MEDICARE, or go to www.medicare.gov.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
• Someone claiming to be a Medicare plan representative says they need “to confirm” your billing information by phone or online. Stop and hang up. Plan representatives are not allowed to ask you for payment over the phone or online.
“If you believe you or someone you know is a victim of Medicare fraud, report it to the Arkansas Insurance Department at 1-800-852-5494 or visit www.stopmedicarefraud.gov,” the news release said.
Details: http://insurance.arkansas.gov, on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ARInsuranceDept and Facebook at http://facebook.com/ArkansasInsuranceDepartment.