Medicare Scams: How to Protect Your Card and Benefits

If someone calls, texts or knocks on your door asking for your Medicare number, a payment, or your bank details to "keep your benefits active," it is a scam. Medicare will not cold-call you to sell plans, offer free braces or genetic tests, or threaten to cancel your coverage. Hang up, close the door, and read on — we'll show you exactly what to do, and how Getshure helps you block these calls before they reach you.

Why Medicare scams work so well

Medicare touches almost every American over 65. Scammers know that, and they use fear ("your benefits will be cancelled"), freebies ("a free back brace shipped to your door") and urgency ("press 1 right now") to get you to share your Medicare number or pay a fake fee. With AI voice tools, the calls sound more polished than they used to — a calm, professional voice reading from a script that was written to push your buttons.

Your Medicare number is as valuable as a credit card number. A crook with it can bill Medicare for services you never got, which can delay your real care, trigger confusing bills, and in some cases put fraudulent diagnoses on your record.

The most common Medicare scams right now

1. The "new Medicare card" call

A caller claims Medicare is issuing new cards (plastic, chip, "updated for 2025," etc.) and needs to "verify" your current Medicare number and date of birth. Medicare does not do this. If a card is ever reissued, it comes in the mail with no phone verification needed.

2. Free medical equipment offers

Robocalls and ads promise a free back brace, knee brace, wrist brace, diabetic supplies, or a "pain cream" — all "covered 100% by Medicare." You give your Medicare number, and the scammer bills Medicare for expensive equipment you may never receive or didn't need. You may later be stuck when you need a real brace and Medicare says it already paid for one.

3. Free genetic or cancer screening tests

A booth at a health fair, a cold call, or a door-to-door visit offers a "free" cheek swab for cancer or hereditary disease screening. They ask for your Medicare card. The lab then bills Medicare thousands of dollars. Your doctor never ordered the test and often never sees the results.

4. Fake Medicare agents during Open Enrollment

Between October and December, scammers posing as Medicare or as licensed agents push you to switch plans over the phone. Some use high-pressure tactics ("this offer ends today"). Real Medicare will never call you unsolicited to sell a plan.

5. "You owe money" or "your benefits are suspended" threats

A caller claims there's a problem with your account and you must pay a fee — often by gift card, wire transfer or cryptocurrency — to keep your coverage. Medicare does not demand payment this way, and never by gift card.

6. AI voice and family tie-ins

Newer scams combine Medicare fraud with AI voice cloning. A "nurse" calls saying your adult child was in an accident and needs you to confirm your Medicare info (or send money) "for the hospital." If you're worried about this, read our guide on AI voice cloning scams and set up a family safe word.

What Medicare will and won't do

Keep this short list taped near your phone:

• Medicare will not call you out of the blue to ask for your Medicare number, Social Security number or bank information.
• Medicare will not threaten to cancel your benefits over the phone.
• Medicare will not ask you to pay with gift cards, wire transfer, cryptocurrency or a payment app.
• Medicare will not send a representative to your home uninvited to sign you up for a plan.
• Medicare will send written notices by mail. Real questions go to 1-800-MEDICARE (the number on the back of your card) or your medicare.gov account.

Protect your Medicare card and number

1. Treat your Medicare number like a credit card. Don't carry the card everywhere — carry a photocopy with the last four digits visible, and bring the real card only to medical appointments.
2. Never give your number to anyone who calls you. If you need to confirm something, hang up and call the number on the back of your card.
3. Don't accept "free" medical equipment or tests from anyone who contacts you first. Real equipment is ordered by your own doctor.
4. Review your Medicare Summary Notice (mailed every three months) or log in at medicare.gov. Look for services, equipment or dates you don't recognize.
5. Shred old notices that show your Medicare number before throwing them away.
6. Get help choosing plans from SHIP, your State Health Insurance Assistance Program — free, unbiased counseling, listed on medicare.gov.

If you already gave out your Medicare number

Don't panic — act quickly and you can limit the damage.

1. Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) and report what happened. Ask them to flag your account for suspicious billing.
2. Check your Medicare Summary Notices and your medicare.gov account for charges you don't recognize.
3. Report the fraud to the HHS Office of Inspector General and to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov.
4. If you also gave out your Social Security number or bank info, go to identitytheft.gov for a step-by-step recovery plan, and consider a credit freeze — see our credit freeze guide.
5. If you sent money, call your bank or card issuer immediately. See what to do in the first 10 minutes.

Block the calls before they reach you: Getshure Scam Shield

You can't talk to a scammer who never gets through. Scam Shield is a feature in the Getshure app (included with every Getshure protection plan) that helps you cut way down on scam and robocalls on your phone.

Scam Shield helps you:

• Identify likely scam and spam callers before you pick up, so "Medicare Benefits Dept" shows as a flagged number instead of a trusted name.
• Block robocalls that are known to push Medicare, Social Security and "free equipment" scripts.
• Look up an unknown number after the fact — useful when a voicemail says "press 1" or asks you to call back.

No app can block every scam call — new numbers appear every day — but cutting the volume means fewer chances to be caught off guard. Learn more on our Getshure app overview and our walkthrough on how to block spam calls on iPhone and Android.

On Android, you can get the app here: Getshure on Google Play. On iPhone, use the download link in your Getshure order confirmation email. You sign in with the same email used on your order — protection isn't active until you sign in.

Read it in plain English: "Don't Get Screwed by AI"

If you'd rather sit down with a real hardcover book and learn how modern scams actually work — on the phone, in your inbox, and now with AI voices — we wrote one for exactly that. Don't Get Screwed by AI ($29, sometimes offered as a free print where you pay shipping) walks through Medicare scams, Social Security scams, bank impersonation, gift card scams and the AI tricks scammers use now. Plain English, large readable type, no jargon. It ships free on US orders of $40 or more, typically in 3–5 business days.

It's a great gift for a parent or grandparent who doesn't want to download an app but will read a book.

A quick checklist to keep by the phone

• Did they call me first? → Hang up.
• Do they want my Medicare, Social Security or bank number? → Hang up.
• Do they offer free braces, tests or equipment? → Hang up.
• Do they threaten to cancel my benefits? → Hang up.
• Do they want gift cards, wire transfer or crypto? → Hang up.
• Not sure? → Call 1-800-MEDICARE on the back of your card.

Help an older parent from a distance

If you're reading this for a parent, two quick steps help a lot:

1. Print the checklist above and tape it to their phone or fridge.
2. Set up Scam Shield on their phone, or order them a Getshure plan so the app is ready to go. Our guide on protecting elderly parents from phone and online scams has more ideas.

Why trust Getshure

We're a small American publisher and we like being easy to check:

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• Cancel in one step at getshure.com/cancel or from the link in your confirmation email.

Want to see for yourself before you buy? Read Is Getshure Legit? for exactly what you can verify today.

Next step

Pick whichever fits you best:

• Block the calls: start a Getshure protection plan and activate the app on your phone or a parent's phone.
• Prefer a book: order Don't Get Screwed by AI ($29, free US shipping at $40+).
• Have a question first: call us at (754) 812-1679 or email contact@getshure.com.

Whichever you choose, you'll be harder to scam tomorrow than you were today.