With open enrollment at hand, the Better Business Bureau warned of health-related scams.
It encourages people to be watchful for common red flags:
Be wary of anyone who contacts you unsolicited and out of the blue
Healthcare.gov offers help with figuring out which plan is right for you. These people — sometimes called Navigators (Enroll Wyoming’s staff are Healthcare.gov Navigators) or Assisters — are not allowed to charge for their help. If someone asks you for payment, it’s a scam. You will also need to contact them. They will not call you out of the blue. Enroll Wyoming Navigators are the most secure and best way to learn more about your health insurance options on the Marketplace.
Be wary of free gifts and “health screenings”
Keep a healthy level of skepticism any time a broker offers you free gifts or other special deals. Never sign up with a broker who offers you an expensive sign-up gift in exchange for providing your Medicare ID number or other personally identifiable information. Other times, brokers offer free “health screenings” to weed out people who are less healthy. This is called “cherry picking” and is against the Medicare rules. Plans in the Health Insurance Marketplace do not discriminate against or charge more if a person has a pre-existing condition.
Guard your government-issued numbers
Never offer your Medicare ID number, Social Security number, health plan info, or banking information to anyone you don’t know.
Go directly to official websites
If you want to make changes to your health care plan, go directly to Medicare.gov, Healthcare.gov, or your employer’s health insurance provider. Don’t click on links in suspicious messages.
Contact your employer directly
If you receive an unexpected email about benefit policies, ask your employer about it before you click on anything to make sure it’s legitimate.
If you suspect fraud when signing up for Health Insurance Marketplace coverage, go to HealthCare.gov or call the marketplace call center at 1-800-318-2596.
Get more tips from the BBB on avoiding health care scams.