There is a scam scary scam going around. It consists of a person calling Medicare beneficiaries saying they need to verify their social security number before the card can be issued. Others have reported that they had people calling them asking for payment via credit card for a processing fee. Another form of the scam tells beneficiaries that they are due a refund from transactions on the previous card. All the scammers need is the person’s bank information to deposit the funds.
People Don’t Know About a New Medicare Card
In a survey conducted by AARP, 76% of respondents didn’t know about or knew very little about the plan to make new cards. 60% weren’t even sure if they would be required to pay a fee. With how little knowledge there is about the new cards, the 58 million Medicare beneficiaries in the US are vulnerable to this attack.
All beneficiaries should know that there is no fee to obtain the new Medicare card, and there are no refunds that need to be issued. Medicare also does not make calls to verify social security numbers and does not initiate uninvited contact.
Learn how to prevent scam calls from reaching your customers.
Reporting Scam Calls
If you believe you have received one of these calls, you can report them to the FTC.
Learn more about protecting yourself from government imposters.
What is Branded Calling?
Business owners: If your customers don’t recognize your number, they likely won’t answer. It’s frustrating and costs your business valuable connections. The solution? INFORM® Branded Calling from First Orion. It’s a smarter, more transparent way for brands of all sizes to show who they are and why they’re calling right on the customer’s mobile display screen, which helps improve caller ID reputation and boost customer confidence. Want to learn more? Check out these commonly asked questions about Branded Calling.
