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

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Illinois SMP Fraud Alert - January 22, 20010

Dear SMP readers,

Today’s Fraud Alert is fairly short. Please be sure to read the section on current scams and share the tips with your colleagues, clients, friends, family, and loved ones!

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

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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

• Hotline to Report Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud
• Census Email NOT from the Better Business Bureau
• Current Scam Updates
• Fraud in the News

 

Hotline to Report Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud

The FBI and the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) have established a telephone hotline where people can report suspected fraud disguised as Haitian earthquake relief. The number is (866) 720-5721. Information on potential earthquake relief scams can also be emailed to disaster@leo.gov.

For more information, see the FBI press release: http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel10/haiti011810.htm

Census Email is NOT from the Better Business Bureau

A widespread email about census scams is currently circulating the internet, claiming to be warnings from the Better Business Bureau. That email is NOT from the Better Business Bureau.  For correct census information from the BBB, please see this article on the BBB website:

http://www.bbb.org/us/article/phony-bbb-e-mail-spreads-fiction-about-2010-census;-get-the-facts-14542

Current Scam Updates

Here are some of the recent scams that other states reported on a national SMP conference call this week:

• Consumers in Texas are receiving door-to-door visits from someone saying that if they don’t want to support abortion in federal health care legislation, they must sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan. (This is, of course, not true.)
• In California and Colorado, consumers are receiving “cold calls” from home health and durable medical equipment (DME) companies. (Just like insurance agents, these companies must abide by Medicare marketing guidelines, which state that they are NOT allowed to “cold call” someone to market services without the person first giving permission to the company.)
• In New Jersey, a hospice agency is visiting Medicare beneficiaries who are independent and do not have serious health conditions. The company is then billing Medicare for 1 month of hospice services.
• A Pennsylvania DME company was recently indicted on several charges of Medicare fraud. The company is accused to soliciting business from senior buildings, having residents sign blank forms, sending equipment that doesn’t work or fit the beneficiaries, and billing for equipment never provided. The Delaware SMP received reports that the company was telling beneficiaries that their local Area Agency on Aging had ‘arranged’ for them to receive equipment from the company.

Here in Illinois, we are still receiving numerous reports of potential fraud and abuse from residents in senior buildings. Those reports often involve home health or durable medical equipment companies who are billing Medicare for services that are different than what they are providing (i.e., giving manicures and billing for home health care, etc.). Please remind Illinois consumers of the following tips:

• Contact your doctor for any health care needs you may have.
• Do NOT accept services or supplies from someone who calls on the phone or comes to your door (and do NOT give them your Medicare or Medicaid number, either!)
• Do NOT give your Medicare number to someone in exchange for “free” services – if the service is free, they don’t need your Medicare number.
• Do NOT sign blank forms or forms that you don’t understand.
  

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Fraud In The News

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

1. “Fix What Ails Nursing Home” – St. Louis Suburban Journal (article about a  St. Louis area nursing home who faces $900,000 in fines for pleading guilty to Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse): St. Louis Nursing Home article

2. “Medicare Beneficiaries Warned of New Phone Scam” – Inforum (article about a phone scam where beneficiaries are being told they have to pay the caller because they don’t have a Part D plan): Part D Phone Scam article

3. “Medicare Fraud Round-Up: N.D. Beneficiaries Getting Illegal Phone Calls, Doctor Indicted In Ohio” – Kaiser Health News (summary of a variety of fraud cases): Medicare Fraud Round-Up

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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.

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