Did you know that billions of dollars are lost to Medicare fraud and abuse each year? Money lost to fraud means increased premiums for beneficiaries, increased taxes for all of us, and less money available for programs that assist caregivers. In addition to the financial cost, there is a human cost. Medicare fraud diminishes the quality of care received by older adults and can result in the denial of medically necessary treatment. That’s the bad news.
The good news is that you can do something about it. In response to the problem of fraud, the U.S. Administration on Aging developed the Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) program. The SMP is a Medicare fraud prevention program that relies on retired Medicare beneficiaries to teach their peers about fraud and what they can do about it. The message is simple: Protect your personal information, know how to Detect fraud, and know where to Report fraud.
