Medicare Scams: Protect Your Number, Spot Fake Offers, Report Fraud

Medicare Scams: Keep Your Number Safe and Know Where to Report

Key takeaways

• Treat your Medicare Number like a credit card. Share it only with doctors and other Medicare providers you trust, insurers acting for you, or trusted helpers such as SHIP.[1][2]
• Medicare will not call you uninvited to sell you something or visit your home.[3]
• Be suspicious of “free” equipment or care that only needs your Medicare Number, pressure sales, and door-to-door or cold-call plan pitches that break Medicare marketing rules.[1]
• Check your Medicare Summary Notice or plan statements against what you actually received.[1][3]
• Report suspected fraud to 1-800-MEDICARE, HHS-OIG, and get free help from Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) at 1-877-808-2468.[2][3][4]

• Related: Is this a scam? checklist
• Related: How to report a scam
• Related: Medicare enrollment · Medicare Part D drug coverage

What Medicare fraud looks like

Medicare fraud includes billing for care you never got, using your information without permission (medical identity theft), and dishonest marketing.[1][3]

Red-flag pitches (from Medicare’s fraud booklet)

Be suspicious if someone says:[1]

• The equipment or service is free—they only need your Medicare Number “for their records”
• “Medicare wants you to have” this item or service
• They know a special way to get Medicare to pay
• More tests make the tests cheaper

Be suspicious of providers or sellers who:[1]

• Bill Medicare for services, supplies, or equipment you did not get
• Put the wrong diagnosis on a claim
• Claim they represent Medicare or a branch of the federal government
• Use pressure or scare tactics for high-priced tests or services
• Offer money or kickbacks to use their services, join a plan, or share your number
• Use phone calls and door-to-door selling as marketing tools
• Offer non-medical rides or housekeeping as if Medicare covers them
• Push braces, power wheelchairs, scooters, or genetic tests you do not need

Plan marketing rules you can use

Medicare plans are not allowed to, among other things:[1]

• Ask for your Social Security number, bank account, or credit card over the phone (with narrow Extra Help application follow-up exceptions)
• Come to your home uninvited to sell Medicare-related products
• Offer cash to join or free meals while marketing
• Enroll you in a drug plan over the phone unless you called them
• Call you unless you are already a member (or the agent who helped you join)
• Ask for payment over the phone, internet, or in person—the plan must send a bill

If a plan seems to break these rules, call 1-800-MEDICARE or your SHIP.[1]

Protect your Medicare Number and card

Medicare’s card uses a Medicare Number that is not your Social Security number, which helps protect your identity.[5] Medicare will never call you uninvited and ask for personal or private information, except in limited situations (for example, a plan you already joined, a return call after you contacted Medicare, or follow-up on a fraud report you filed).[1][3][5]

If your card is lost or you think someone is using your number, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227; TTY 1-877-486-2048).[1]

How to check for bad billing

1. Write down dates of visits and keep receipts.[1]
2. Compare them with your Medicare Summary Notice (Original Medicare) or your plan’s statements.[1][3]
3. Log into your Medicare.gov account to see claims without waiting for mail.[1][3]
4. If a charge looks wrong and you know the provider, call the office first—sometimes it is a coding error.[1]
5. If it still looks like fraud, report it (next section).

Where to report Medicare fraud

Have ready when you call: your name and Medicare Number; the provider or supplier name; the service or item; date; amount Medicare paid; why you think it should not have been paid.[1]

SMP projects exist in all 50 states, D.C., and several territories. They train volunteers to help people prevent, detect, and report Medicare fraud, errors, and abuse, and they work with HHS-OIG, CMS, and state partners.[4]

Also file a general scam report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov if the pitch was a classic impersonation or gift-card demand—see how to report a scam.[6]

For plan choices in plain language (education only, not plan sales), see Medicare Made Simple when the course launches.

FAQ

Will Medicare call me to ask for my Medicare Number? Not out of the blue to sell something. Limited call-backs exist if you already joined a plan, left a message, or reported fraud.[1][3] When in doubt, hang up and call 1-800-MEDICARE yourself.[1]

Someone offered free genetic testing or a back brace if I give my number. Is that OK? Be very careful. Medicare’s fraud booklet flags unneeded braces, scooters, and genetic tests, and “free” offers that only need your number, as common fraud patterns.[1]

I see a charge for a visit I never had. What now? Call the provider if you know them, then report through 1-800-MEDICARE or HHS-OIG if it still looks wrong. SMP can help you through the steps.[1][2]

Can a salesperson enroll me at my front door? Medicare plans may not come to your home uninvited to sell Medicare-related products.[1] Report that behavior.

Sources

1. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Protecting Yourself From Fraud (Publication 10111). Medicare.gov. n.d. https://www.medicare.gov/publications/10111-protecting-yourself-from-fraud.pdf. Accessed October 29, 2026.
2. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Reporting Fraud. CMS. n.d. https://www.cms.gov/medicare/medicaid-coordination/center-program-integrity/reporting-fraud. Accessed October 29, 2026.
3. Medicare.gov. Reporting Medicare fraud & abuse. CMS/Medicare. n.d. https://www.medicare.gov/basics/reporting-medicare-fraud-and-abuse. Accessed October 29, 2026.
4. Administration for Community Living. Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP). ACL. Last modified January 16, 2025. https://acl.gov/programs/protecting-rights-and-preventing-abuse/senior-medicare-patrol-smp. Accessed October 29, 2026.
5. Medicare.gov. Your Medicare Card. CMS/Medicare. n.d. https://www.medicare.gov/basics/get-started-with-medicare/using-medicare/your-medicare-card. Accessed October 29, 2026.
6. Federal Trade Commission. ReportFraud.ftc.gov. FTC. n.d. https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/. Accessed October 29, 2026.

Disclaimer

This article is for general education only and is not medical, legal, or financial advice. Talk to your doctor, a licensed attorney, or a SHIP counselor (Medicare) about your situation. In an emergency, call 911.

Attribution

Portions of this page are adapted from "HowToLiveBetter" (高性价比人生指南) by eternity4719, https://github.com/eternity4719/HowToLiveBetter, licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Changes: topic and evidence approach adapted from Chapter 08 (anti-fraud); rewritten for the U.S. context and re-sourced to U.S. research and official guidance. Not a direct translation. China-specific anti-fraud hotlines and schemes from the source were not used.