Callers claiming to be from Medicare are telling people a new card is on the way or that their coverage is about to be cancelled, and then asking for a Medicare number, a Social Security number or bank details. TheStreet reported on Oct. 18 that the calls are spiking as open enrollment, which runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, gets under way. Real Medicare cards are free and arrive in the mail on their own, the Federal Trade Commission says.
What are the callers saying?
The report describes two main pitches. In the first, the caller says Medicare is issuing updated cards and asks the person to confirm a Medicare number or banking details. In the second, the caller warns that coverage will be suspended unless the person verifies a Social Security number over the phone.
The FTC’s consumer advice for open enrollment season describes the same playbook for the card pitch. Scammers pose as Medicare, often call out of the blue, and may already know some personal details to sound legitimate. They say a new or updated card is needed and ask for a Medicare, bank or credit card number.
Caller ID is no proof of anything, the FTC adds, because the number on the screen can be faked to show Medicare’s name or phone number.
Who is likely to get these calls, and what is the safe answer?
Anyone enrolled in Medicare, or helping a parent who is, can expect a call like this before Dec. 7, since the pitches are built around the enrollment window. The safe answer is the same for every version: hang up, then call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) on a number the person dials, not one the caller supplies. Medicare.gov’s guidance tells people to do exactly that if a caller asks for a Medicare or Social Security number.
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How does the real Medicare reach people?
The FTC says real Medicare mails replacement cards automatically at no cost, does not call, text or email out of the blue asking for numbers or payment, and asks a person to verify information only when that person contacts Medicare first. Anyone who asks for payment for a card is a scammer, the agency says in an earlier consumer alert: “Only scammers do that.”
Medicare.gov says the same thing in its own words: Medicare will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home. The site says Medicare or its representatives ask for personal information only in narrow cases, such as returning a call a person made after joining a plan or taking a fraud report. It also asks people to protect their card, number and other personal information, and to share them only with doctors and others who need them, such as insurers acting for the person.
That explains why the cancellation call rings false. Medicare.gov told TheStreet that it asks beneficiaries to verify personal details only when the beneficiary starts the contact, so a stranger demanding a Social Security number to keep coverage active fits no real Medicare process.
Why does open enrollment bring more calls?
The TheStreet report calls the season the busiest for fraud calls aimed at beneficiaries. It says the FTC has warned that impersonation schemes intensify each enrollment window, and that once scammers have a Medicare number they can bill Medicare and commit identity theft. It adds that scammers lean on the Dec. 7 deadline to rush people into hasty coverage decisions.
“Scammers already know your enrollment window, and they’re dialing now,” the report warns. The enrollment window opened Oct. 15, and the report says the calls started as it did.
Rose Morales, a Senior Medicare Patrol investigative case manager at California Health Advocates, told AARP that any caller asking for personal information is a red flag, according to the report. The report also notes a separate warning from the Office of Inspector General at the Department of Health and Human Services about free genetic testing and equipment offers. In those, scammers bill Medicare for items nobody requested, and beneficiaries could owe the full cost if Medicare denies a genetic testing claim.
The FTC’s earlier alert from November 2024 describes a related trick, in which a caller says a Medicare number is needed for a medical equipment claim the person does not recall making. The goal, the FTC says, is to file fake claims with that number.
What if a number is already out?
Medicare.gov says anyone who shared details with a caller should use the same 1-800-MEDICARE line to report the exposure, according to TheStreet. The Medicare site lists other ways to report as well, including a fraud report online through the HHS Office of Inspector General. People in a Medicare Advantage or drug plan can call the I-MEDIC fraud line at 1-877-7SAFERX (1-877-772-3379).
The same Medicare page says anyone who suspects fraud should call 1-800-MEDICARE and also advises checking statements for mistakes and calling the provider if a charge looks wrong. Medicare cards, numbers and other personal details should go only to doctors and the people who need them.
The FTC asks people to report Medicare impersonators at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to contact a local Senior Medicare Patrol at smpresource.org about possible Medicare fraud, errors or abuse. For free help comparing plans and costs before the Dec. 7 deadline, the agency points to the State Health Insurance Assistance Program at shiphelp.org.
Got a call about a “new” Medicare card?
A caller who gets a Medicare number or a Social Security number can bill Medicare, open accounts or try to reach bank logins before the person hangs up and thinks twice. Open enrollment runs until Dec. 7, so the calls are likely to keep coming until then.
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
David M. Keller is a finance writer based in Columbus, Ohio, covering personal finance and consumer-focused economic topics. He earned his degree in journalism from Ohio University and began his career reporting on local business and economic trends for a regional media outlet. Since then, he has contributed to a variety of online publications, focusing on clear, practical coverage of topics such as cost of living, debt, and everyday financial decision-making.
