Medicare Scams Target Residents, Cleveland Heights Officials Say

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — Cleveland Heights officials are warning residents about Medicare scams and con artists trying to steal stimulus checks. The new coronavirus outbreak has led to similar scams throughout the nation.

"The COVID-19 crisis has brought out all kinds of unscrupulous characters trying to scam people out of their stimulus checks," the city said in a press release. Con artists will also target Medicare users, hoping to catch them while they're distracted by COVID-19.

Medicare will never contact a user for their Medicare number, or other personal information, unless the user has given them permission in advance. Medicare users also cannot be enrolled in the program over the phone, unless you have called Medicare first.

"And never, ever give out your Medicare number. Report anything suspicious to Medicare by calling 1-800-MEDICARE," the city said in a statement.

Ohio officials also recently shared nine tips to protect stimulus checks from scammers.

• Do not disclose your PayPal information — no one needs a PayPayl account to receive a stimulus payment. All payments will either be made via direct deposit or mailed to an Ohioan.
• If you receive a stimulus check and it is for an odd amount of money, or it states you need to verify the check online or over the phone — it's a scam.
• You should get a paper notice in the mail a couple of weeks after your stimulus payment is sent. The notice should say where the payment was sent and when. If you can't locate the payment at that point, call the IRS or visit the IRS website.
• Avoid anyone saying they can obtain an "instant" stimulus payment for you.
• Do not provide personal information or pay a processing fee to anyone promising a quicker stimulus payment.
• Don't click on links or download attachments from an email unless you know the source and know the email is legitimate. Unintentionally downloading malware could give thieves access to your personal information.
• The government will not call anyone asking for their Social Security, credit card or bank account numbers.
• No one has to sign up to receive a stimulus check. The IRS will use prior tax returns to calculate the payment.
• No one has to pay money to receive their stimulus check. The government will not ask for payment upfront.