March 2012 Illinois Senior Medicare Fraud Tip Print
Wednesday, 14 March 2012 11:39

Chicago, IL – March 7, 2012.

The Filipino American Community Health Initiative of Chicago (FACHIC) is a participating agency in the Medicare Fraud Project led by the Coalition of Limited English Speaking Elderly in the Chicago area. FACHIC will be sharing a monthly Medicare fraud tip to seniors in English and Tagalog. Please feel free to share the tip widely.

March 2012 Illinois Senior Medicare Patrol Program

Mr. Jones received a visit from someone who told him they could give him a free scooter – all he needed to do was give the visitor his Medicare number, and they would deliver his scooter to his door. Mr. Jones gave the person his Medicare number, and a week later, he got a scooter. He was very happy. About three months later, the scooter stopped working. Mr. Jones tried to call the company that delivered the scooter to get the scooter fixed, but no one would call him back. When he called Medicare to find out how to get his scooter fixed, he found out that the company had billed Medicare for an electric wheelchair instead of a scooter, stealing thousands of dollars from Mr. Jones’s health care benefits!

The story above is a very common scam. Many people do not realize that their benefits have been stolen until they need an electric wheelchair, and then they can’t get one because Medicare will not pay for it. NEVER accept anything from someone who calls on the phone or comes to your door. If you need a piece of equipment, you must talk to your doctor first. Your doctor should write a prescription or an order for any services or supplies that you need. If someone tells you that they can get you something without an order from your doctor, it is probably a scam! If you have questions or want to learn more about health care fraud, contact the Senior Medicare Patrol program at AgeOptions: (800)699-9043 or visit www.illinoissmp.org.

Marso 2012 Ang Programang Illinois Senior Medicare Patrol

May bumisita kay Mr. Jones na nagsabing bibigyan sya ng libreng scooter – kailangan nga lang na ibigay nya sa bumisita ang kanyang numero sa Medicare at ihahatid ang scooter sa kanyang tahanan. Ibinigay ni Mr. Jones ang numero ng kanyang Medicare, at pagkaraan ng isang linggo, nakuha nya ang scooter. Masayang-masaya sya. Pagkaraan ng tatlong buwan, hindi na gumana ang scooter. Pinilit ni Mr. Jones na tawagan ang kumpanyang naghatid ng scooter para ipaayos ito, ngunit walang nagbalik ng tawag nya. Nang tinawagan nya ang Medicare upang malaman kung paano ipapa-ayos ang scooter, natuklasan nya na siningil ng kumpanya ang Medicare para sa isang wheelchair na di-kuryente sa halip na scooter, isang pagnanakaw at pagwawaldas ng libu-libong dolyares ng benepisyo sa pangangalaga ng kalusugan ni Mr. Jones!

Ang kwentong ito ay isang pangkaraniwang "scam" o panlilinlang. Marami ang hindi nakaka-tuklas na ang kanilang benepisyo ay nanakaw hanggang sa kinakailangan na nila ng isang wheelchair na di-kuryente, at hindi na sila makakuha dahil hindi na babayaran ng Medicare ito. HWAG tatanggap ng kahit na ano mula sa kahit na sinong tatawag sa telepono o kakatok sa pinto. Kung kakailanganin nyo ng isang kagamitan, kailangang tawgan muna ang inyong duktor. Ang inyong duktor ang susulat ng riseta o gagawa ng "order" para sa ano mang serbisyo o kagamitan na inyong kailangan. Kung may magsasabi sa inyo na makakakuha kayo ng walang "order" mula sa duktor, malamang na ito'y isang scam! Kung meron kayong katanungan o nais nyong makakuha ng dagdag na impormasyon ukol sa panlilinlang sa pangangalaga ng kalusugan, tawagan ang Programang Senior Medicare Patrol sa AgeOptions: (800)699-9043 o tignan ang www.illinoissmp.org na websayt.

The Filipino American Community Health Initiative of Chicago (FACHIC) is a collaborative of community, health professional, and academic leaders united to address Filipino health issues in the Chicago area. The mission of FACHIC is to increase awareness of Filipino health disparities and to implement health interventions and educational programming to improve the health status of the Filipino community. FACHIC is a 501(c)(3) Illinois nonprofit organization. All programs and services are free and available to all. For more information, visit http://www.fachic.org.

 
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