September 2026 Fraud Prevention

Keep Your Personal Information Away from Scammers

The Missouri Senior Medicare Patrol has an important message for Medicare beneficiaries: Be careful if someone calls you asking for personal information or trying to sell you a Medicare plan.

Scammers and unwanted sales callers are common these days. Adults who are getting ready to enroll in Medicare, as well as those already enrolled, are targeted by these callers.

Some callers may sound very official. They might say they are calling from Medicare or another organization that sounds familiar. Scammers can sound very convincing.

Insurance companies and agents that sell Medicare plans must follow rules about how they contact people. For example, they can’t make cold calls to sell these plans without your consent.

Even so, many keep getting unwanted calls from people trying to sell Medicare products or steal personal information.

Never give personal information to an unexpected caller. Medicare will not unexpectedly call and ask you for your:

• Social Security number
• Medicare number
• Bank account information
• Credit card number
• Date of birth
• Passwords or other account information

Medicare will not unexpectedly call you and ask for this kind of information.

If you are not sure whether a caller is legitimate, hang up and make the call yourself. Don’t use a phone number the caller gives you. You can contact Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).

When it comes to Medicare and your personal information, it is better to be safe than sorry.

The Missouri SMP is here to provide you with information you need to protect, detect, and report potential Medicare fraud, errors, and abuse. If you think you or a loved one has been a target of a Medicare scam, call the Missouri SMP at 888-515-6565.

This project was supported, in part, by the U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $638,014 with 100 percent funding by ACL/HHS. The contents are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, ACL/HHS, or the U.S. Government