Scammers like to take advantage of those who are most vulnerable, including senior citizens on Medicare. Knowing that Medicare has been sending out new cards, they may call you using one of several methods:

• Pretending to be a Medicare representative and asking for confirmation of your personal information, bank details, or Medicare number before “they” can send your new card.
  
  
• Saying you’ll be charged a fee if you don’t provide certain information.
  
  
• Offering you free equipment or services in exchange for your Medicare information.
  
  
• Informing you of new policies or updates about Medicare, then asking for personal data.

Some of these calls may sound convincing and may even display Medicare phone numbers on your caller ID. But the only way to be sure is to initiate a call to Medicare yourself to find out how real they are.

Medicare will never ask for your personal information over the phone, so don’t give this information to anyone who calls asking for it, even if they’re offering you something in return. Instead, hang up, call Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE yourself, and report the scam. You can also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Additionally, learn the truth about Medicare’s card replacement initiative.

With a healthy dose of skepticism, you won’t be fooled by Medicare scammers.