There are several things you can do to help prevent Medicare fraud.
- Protect your Medicare number the same way you would protect a credit card number. Only give your Medicare number or your Social Security number to your doctors and health care providers. Be careful about giving it to people who offer you a service for free and asks for your Medicare number.
- Protect your medical information. If people who are not medical professionals want to see your medical records or recommend services, don’t let them.
- Learn more about what Medicare covers. If a provider tells you how to get Medicare to cover a service that normally is not covered, be suspicious.
- Don’t accept services you don’t need. Some dishonest providers may try to pressure or scare you into getting unnecessary tests or other services. Don’t let them.
- If it sounds too good to be true… If a provider promises Medicare will pay for mud treatments, Swedish massages or dance classes (these have all been actual fraud cases), be skeptical. The more you know about what Medicare covers, the less likely you will be to fall into a Medicare fraud trap.