Medicare – Fight Healthcare Fraud and Abuse

The key elements to fighting Medicare fraud are:

Protect – Treat your Medicare card like a credit card. Don’t provide the information to any strangers.Carry your card and information only when necessary for medical appointments, or pharmacy visits.

Detect – Review your Medicare Summary Notice(s) MSNs and Explanation of Benefits  forms for mistakes including duplicate billings, charges for services not performed, and services not ordered by physicians.

Report – Call SMP, the Senior Medicare Patrol at 800-503-5190 and request an initial screening for questionable billings. It is best to clarify with your medical provider or Medicare Health Plan first to begin researching questionable items. The SMP line is intended as a follow-up if you do not obtain satisfactory responses to your questions.

Fraud control requires constant oversight by those receiving medical care. Millions of dollars a year are paid to unscrupulous fraudsters which, in turn, increases the costs of Medicare coverage for us all.