How to Prevent Medicaid and Medicare Fraud

A growing problem among senior citizens is Medicare Fraud.  Dishonest people can steal your Medicare information and use it to let other people obtain medical treatment in your name.  Criminals have been known to even purchase drugs for their own use or to sell.  This type of Medicare fraud and medical identity theft can cause serious problems for innocent people when they visit a doctor or they try to fill a prescription, only to discover that someone else has already used their benefits.  For example, a pharmacy may refuse to refill a prescription for painkillers if they believe you have already filled it recently.  Fortunately, there are steps you can take to prevent this from happening to you.

Steps to Prevent Medicare Fraud

*  Do not carry your Medicare or Medicaid card around, except when you will need it for a visit to a doctor, hospital or pharmacy.

*  Never give your Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security numbers out over the phone to a stranger.  Legitimate agencies will never call you and ask for your number; government departments will never contact you to sell you a product.

*  Carefully examine your Medicare Summary Notice (MSN) and Part D Explanation of Benefits (EOB) for mistakes.  Make sure they do not list things like:  visits to doctors you did not see, services or treatments you did not get, double billing, or drug purchases you did not make.

*  If you see suspicious activity on your MSN or EOB, you can report it to the Senior Medicare Patrol.  They have a website at www.smpresource.org and they can put you in touch with the proper authorities in your state.

Don't become a victim of Medicare Fraud and don't let someone else misuse your information.

In addition, if you have an elderly relative, you may want to help them out by checking any paperwork they receive from Medicare. It could save them, and you, a lot of problems later on.

Resources to help you:

www.smpresource.org
www.stopmedicarefraud.gov

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  wikipedia.org/commons

The Terrifying Kidnapping Hoax

A couple of years ago I wrote a post about the crying teenager hoax.  This is a scam in which a young person calls you in tears and pretends to be your child or grandchild.  They are crying so hard that it is difficult to make out what they are saying.  However, it is clear that they need you to wire them money right away in order to solve their problem.

You can see that article here:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com/2012/06/crying-teenager-phone-hoax.html

Now the scammers have stepped up the intensity of the calls to make them even more terrifying, so people are much more likely to rush to the bank and wire the money to the caller as quickly as possible.

It is called the Kidnapping Hoax.

These people have dropped to a new low.

Instead of a crying teenager, you get an ominous phone call from a person who claims to have kidnapped your child or grandchild and threatens to kill them if you do not send them money quickly.  In the background, you can hear what sounds like a child's voice crying and screaming "help me" or "don't hurt me."  Sometimes there are sounds that indicate the child is being beaten.  From what I have been told, the phone calls are truly heart-rending.

You can imagine how much your adrenalin would kick in if you received a phone call like this.  It would be hard to think straight.

Don't fall victim to this hoax.  If you EVER think someone you love may have been kidnapped, call the police.  Don't try to handle anything like this on your own.

Once you get the police involved, immediately write down everything you can remember about the call ... the phone number that showed up on your caller ID, any background noises you heard, whether the caller sounded like a man or woman, whether the teen voice in the background sounded like it was male or female, etc.

In addition, you will want to call all your relatives and, without alarming them, confirm that they are all OK.  You can even tell them that you received a "strange call" that you suspect was a wrong number, but you wanted to make sure it was not from them.  Doing this will put your mind at ease that your loved ones are alright, until the police can take over.

Do NOT wire money to these people.  It will only encourage them to keep committing this fraud and making these terrifying phone calls to other potential victims.

The only way to truly stop this type of crime is when people stop falling for it.

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  www.morguefile.com

Teens Fall for Instagram Comments Scam

Have you heard about Instagram Comments Scam?  Recently I saw a report about the frightening danger posed by those ads you occasionally see in the comments section of various articles that you read online.  They are particularly prevalent under the celebrity photos that are shown on Instagram, prompting authorities to call it the Instagram Comments Scam, but the same idea applies to other sites, as well. 

You know the ads that I am referring to ... the ones that advertise things like: "you can earn $2000 to $10,000 in a few minutes" by contacting the phone number that they give you.

The "Good Morning America" segment on which I saw on this story demonstrated exactly what happens if you make that phone call.

Apparently, the person will tell you to purchase a few of the reload packs that people use to reload pre-paid debit cards with cash.  Then, they explain that you should give them the security pin number on the back of the reload packs and, in return, they will hack into the company computer system and add "zero's" to the amount of the reload pack.  In other words, they will add a zero to a $200 card and make it worth $2000.  Of course this is illegal, but apparently teens, in particular, have been tempted by the idea of quick cash and have fallen victim to this scam.

Unfortunately, once the scammer has the security pin number, the criminal can simply steal all the money you have on the card.  They are more than happy to take your $200.

To make matter worse, they know that the majority of people who fall for this scam will never report it, because they don't want to admit that they were trying to cheat the reload card company.  So most of the time the financial loss remains a secret.

Estimates are that teens are falling for this type of fraud by the thousands.

This is a really frightening scam.  Don't be the next victim and don't let your teenager fall for it, either.  Make sure they know that this is illegal and that the person most likely to be hurt is not some "anonymous corporation," as they think.  The teens themselves are the ones most likely to end up losing money in this fraud!

I also feel that sites like Instagram need to do a better job of policing the comments that are left.  Any comments like this should be automatically deleted and the writers should be banned from the site.  Site owners have a responsibility to not let known scams flourish on their sites.

Source: "Good Morning America," ABC television network, August 20, 2014.

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  Morguefile

Creepy Cosmetics You Do NOT Want to Use

We all like to look our best and, in an attempt to do that, many women use a variety of cosmetics.  However, do you really know what is in those products?  Are these actually substances that you would want to put on your skin ... particularly your face?

According to the website Consumer Savvy Tips, some of the ingredients that are used in cosmetics can be absolutely disgusting!  Listed below are some of the worst:

Creepy Cosmetics Ingredients

*  Cow Dung - while it isn't in your makeup yet, it is already being using in Japan and it will be coming to the United States and other countries, soon.  You can bet they are not going to list it on the ingredients label, either, without changing the name to some fancy chemical term.

*  Ambergris - this sounds like a pretty name, something that you wouldn't mind using.  In truth, it is actually whale vomit and it has already been used for years in perfume and some creams.

*  Caviar - it's expensive, so it must be wonderful, right?  Do you really want raw fish eggs on your skin?

*  Placenta - prized for its protein ... but do you really want to rub it on your face?

*  Chemicals whose names you cannot pronounce.  While this was not on the list of substances mentioned by the Consumer Savvy website, I often wonder about the idea of rubbing all these different unknown chemicals on my skin, especially when I have no idea what they actually are. 

* Poisonous substances that contaminate your makeup, such as arsenic or high levels of lead.  A surprisingly large amount of makeup has been contaminated with bacteria and other substances that are never listed on the ingredient lists ... often because they are not supposed to be there in the first place.  Do you really want to rub these things on your skin every day?

*  Formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, is found in about one in five cosmetic products, often listed under the names DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, diazolidinyl urea, sodium hydroxymenthylglycinate and bronopol.  Check your makeup and see if you find one of these substances listed in the ingredients.

You should also know that our FDA has only banned about a dozen toxic chemicals from cosmetics, while the European Union has banned over 1300.  That's something to think about!

The good thing about the Consumer Savvy article is that it also offers some practical suggestions for natural substances that you can use on your skin and hair, such as avocado, beer, tea bags (which I have used), mint, limes, etc.  These are great alternatives and you can read more about them here:

http://www.consumersavvytips.org/the_real_truth_about_your_cosmetics.html

For more information, look for: "13 Things The Beauty Industry Won't Tell You," Reader's Digest, August 2014

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  www.morguefile.com

Do NOT Buy Phony Affliate Websites

Recently I heard about an elderly man who wanted to earn money from home.  He had no experience with affiliate marketing or online writing sites and he did not believe he could set up a website by himself.  Consequently, he spent $4,000 to purchase an affiliate site from a company that promised him he could make money selling products off his own website.  When he couldn't figure out how to use the site, he showed the site to a friend of mine who is knowledgeable about computers and earning online income.  She was shocked to discover how much he had paid for a very basic website that simply advertised products for a drop shipper. 

The site was not worth anywhere near what the man had paid for it.  My friend said there was so much work to be done to fix it that she would have to charge him for her time.  In addition to what he has already paid, plus the fee she will have to charge him, the man will also have to pay an ongoing fee to the company that hosts the website.  In other words, he has already spent thousands of dollars and he will continue to pour more money into this site ... not knowing if he will ever sell a single product!

To make matters worse, the "drop shipper" who handles the merchandise for him is simply turning around, entering the orders on Amazon and having Amazon ship the products.  The drop shipper plans to charge the man who purchased the website an additional $37 a month to handle this fairly simple process.  In addition, because the drop shipper marks up the prices, the prices on the website are significantly higher than the prices on Amazon ... which means it is even less likely that the man will have any sales.

When my friend saw how badly this man had been cheated, she said that she plans to redesign the website and eliminate the drop shipper so he can order the products directly through Amazon himself.  However, there is still no guarantee that he will ever successfully sell anything and it is highly unlikely that he will ever recoup the thousands of dollars he spent.


As my friend said, "scammers are very clever at their trade - they prey on vulnerable people who are trying to better their lives."  They take advantage of people who do not know how to earn money on the internet on their own without getting ripped off.

There are far too many disreputable companies out there who work day and night to lure people in with promises of training and ongoing support ... which virtually disappears as soon as the clients send in their money to purchase a website. 

When my friend was discussing this situation on an online forum, another writer said that she, too, had been scammed by a company called Your Own Store.  This buyer said that she had paid $9000 to buy an affiliate website that could not possibly have ever generated enough money to earn back her investment.  She pointed out that she was computer literate and a school teacher, yet she still fell victim to this scam.  The owners of the company assured her that they would train her and give her all the help she needed.  However, all they did was teach her what are known as "blackhat" techniques ... which means trying to attract customers in ways that are not acceptable by Google and can ultimately get your site in trouble or even cause them to close it down.

In this woman's case, she worked for three years to try to reach the goal they set for her of 250 visits a day in order to earn a passive income.  She worked constantly to try to achieve that goal, without success.  Eventually, the company shut down her site because she could not afford to pay them the monthly fee to maintain her domain.

When she filed a complaint with authorities and learned more about the company, she discovered that the company had sold hundreds and hundreds of these sites and not one person had made a profit.  To add insult to injury, the principals of the company were able to take millions of dollars in profit and disappear.

The women who told me about these two incidents said that they were extremely upset that so many new people continue to be cheated in this way.  We were discussing this on a forum where writers share information about InfoBarrel and Hubpages, two legitimate affiliate sites that let you write reviews of Amazon products and earn commissions.  In sites like these, there is no cost to join, no ongoing expenses and no outlays other than the effort involved in writing your reviews of Amazon products ... which can include books, movies, video games, electronic equipment, kitchen accessories, toys, etc.  Your reviews might or might not be successful and earn you much money.  However, whether you earn anything or not, you have not spent money in order to try to sell products and earn money.

In addition to InfoBarrel and Hubpages, there are other legitimate websites where writers can earn money writing reviews about Amazon products.  These include DailyTwoCents, and Writedge.  While the income may not be large, especially at first when you have only written a few reviews, at least you will not be losing money.  In addition, your income will grow as your library of reviews increases.

Some experienced online writers also eventually develop their own websites or blogs and write product reviews on them.  A blogger blog, for example, can be set up for free and, if you have already become an Amazon affiliate through another site, you can write reviews on it and earn money at no cost to you!

Another site where thousands of people earn a couple of hundred dollars a month is Bubblews.  Participants only need to write short articles (about 100 words long) about their community, their lives, their hobbies, or their opinions and they can earn money from these short articles. 

Before investing any money to buy an online business, check out the legitimate sites that allow you to earn money without paying a fee.  If someone tries to sell you a website, don't fall for their lies.

You are reading from the website:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  Photo of cat at computer is property of author, Deborah-Diane; all rights reserved.

Beware of Fake Businesses You Find on Google Searches!

I was stunned to hear about this shocking scam.  When you Google a business by using a keyword such as plumbers, electricians or locksmiths, you may actually be given the information of a fake company that doesn't really exist.

When you call the number given in the ad, you could be calling a legitimate local company or you could be calling what is known as a boiler-room operation that may be thousands of miles away.  If you happen to get one of these phony companies, they will give you a reasonable quote, but the person they send out may not even be licensed or work for a local business.

Once the service provider shows up, they will suddenly find more work that needs to be done or "special circumstances" that require them to charge much more than the original quote.  You already have them there, so you will probably end up paying the additional fees.

 

These unscrupulous people flood Google Maps with hundreds of fraudulent listings in every city.  This allows them to trick thousands of consumers into using unlicensed, low-quality or overpriced service providers.

How to protect yourself:

!.  Get a recommendation from another source such as AAA or a friend.  Don't rely solely on Google!

2.  Do another type of Google search on the name of any company you consider using ... combined with the word "scam."  See what information pops up about this company.

3.  Ask for a written estimate and the state license number of the company.

4.  Check with the Better Business Bureau to see if the company is listed and if they have any unresolved complaints.

Whatever you do, don't simply assume that if a company pops up in a Google search, it is legitimate.  You could simply be seeing a advertisement that anyone put online!

Source of the information on this scam:

Bottom Line/Personal

http://www.scambusters.org/fakecompanies.html

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo credit:  Photo of the cat and computer was taken by author, Deborah-Dian; all rights reserved.

Do You Believe the IRS Lost its Emails about the Tea Party?

As someone who is registered as a non-partisan, I try to look at both political parties with a skeptical eye.  In the 2014 open California primary, I voted for five Republicans and five Democrats, for a variety of elected office.  I do not have a vested interested in either party, other than hoping that they will remain honest (which may be a pipe dream).

I am also old enough to remember the Watergate scandal and the missing 20 minutes of dictaphone tape that were supposedly erased by Nixon's secretary.  I was a young legal secretary at the time and, along with several other secretaries, I tried to re-enact the way that tape was supposedly erased, as described by the secretary.  We decided it was absolutely ridiculous that anyone could maintain such an awkward position for so long.  There was no way that the Watergate tape was accidentally erased.

As a result, I am very skeptical of the latest government scandal involving missing IRS emails.  Supposedly, IRS employee Lois Lerner had her computer crash in 2011.  She was the head of the IRS division that handled the tax exempt status for groups and is accused of having unfairly delayed the applications of organizations that were known to lean towards the Tea Party.  Some of the applications were delayed by as much as a year, a crucial delay during an election year.  The missing emails covered a two year period between 2009 and 2011. 

Now the IRS has asserted that they also lost emails on other computers that crashed, including the computer of Nikole Flax who was the chief of staff for Lerner's boss.

Doesn't that seem like an incredible coincidence?

This is especially disconcerting since all IRS emails, as well as the emails of other government departments, are supposed to be stored "in the cloud."  Apparently, these particular emails were not properly handled or saved.  This seems especially hard to believe since the emails were written over a two year period.  Really?  None of them were properly saved over a period that lasted that long?

If an individual made the same claims to the IRS, they would not believe us.  Why should we believe the IRS?

I'll be interested to hear what you believe.  Please feel free to leave a comment below.

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Source:

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/lawmakers-irs-lost-emails-tea-party-probe-24175196

Despicable Scams Affecting Senior Citizens

It is bad enough that there are criminals around the world who seem to spend all their time trying to cheat Americans out of their hard-earned money.  What makes these crimes even more horrifying, however, is the fact that one out of three scam victims is over the age of 65!   The number may actually be higher, in fact, because senior citizens often do not tell anyone that they have fallen victim to a scam.  They are either too embarrassed or they do not want their children to take over the handling of their money.  Consequently, many of these crimes go unreported.  Both the AARP and the National Council on Aging are trying to inform people of these issues in the hope that fewer seniors will become victims. 

Common Scams Against the Elderly

Online Dating:  If you put your profile on a dating site, be cautious if, after weeks or months of pleasant messages, the person you have connected with online begins to express a need for money.  They may say they want the money so they can afford to visit you or because they have a medical or personal emergency.  Frequently they will ask that you send the money in a wire transfer.  American women over the age of 50 are the most common victims of these scams.  They lost a reported $34 million in 2012, while American men lost approximately $5 million.  It is believed that many more cases go unreported because the victims are too embarrassed to tell anyone.  Each incident costs the victim an average of $10,000.

Sweepstakes:  Beware of letters, emails and phone calls announcing that you have won a contest or sweepstakes, especially one that you do not remember entering.  If the contest administrators ask for money to pay them money in advance to cover taxes, insurance or other fees, it is almost certainly a fraud, since honest contests are not allowed to do this.  Call your local sheriff's office or county prosecuting attorney's office.

Phony Charities:  I have repeatedly listed on this blog that people need to thoroughly vet any new charity before they make donations to it.  Never give your credit card information to someone who comes to your door or calls you with a charitable request.  Be skeptical of any charities that you have never heard of.  Check them out with the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance, CharityNavigator.org, or a similar charity evaluator.  Otherwise, stick to charities that you have dealt with in the past and trust, such as your religious organization, the Red Cross, United Way, the Salvation Army and similar well-known non-profits.

Home Repair Scams:  These scams happen most often after a major catastrophe that damages homes in your neighborhood; however, they can happen at other times, as well.  Someone may show up at your door offering to repair your gutters, fix your driveway, replace roof shingles or make other home repairs.  They can cheat you in one of two ways: either they ask for an upfront fee and then disappear; or they make shoddy repairs and keep asking for more and more money to fix new "issues" they find (or create).  Get recommendations for contractors from your friends, neighbors or insurance company before you use anyone.  Make sure they have a contractor's license.  Never hire anyone who unexpectedly shows up at your door.

Grandparents Scam:  Two personal friends of mine have fallen victim to this scam.  Both of them were intelligent women who never thought they would fall for something like this.  Both of them discussed the situation with their husbands before sending money.  One of them is married to a retired Deputy Sheriff and even he was fooled.  In this scam, a upset "grandchild" or other relative calls, desperately begging for money and sobbing at the same time, so it is hard to recognize their voice.  Think you would not be fooled?  People in the United States have reported losing $110 million a year to this scam ... and many more may not have reported it!  We have already told our children and grandchildren to not get their feelings hurt if they call us and ask for money and we call other relatives to verify the story before we respond. 

Healthcare Thieves: This has been going on for a long time, but it is expected to become worse for a while because so many people are confused about the new Affordable Care Act.  A stranger, pretending to be a consultant, may offer to help you get free medical supplies or to help you understand changes to your insurance.  What they are really trying to do, however, is steal your identity, get medical care under your name, and leave you with the bill.  A woman here in Orange County, California, where I live, was arrested a few years ago for stealing another woman's medical identity and using the other person's identity to get several elective surgeries, including cosmetic surgery!

Investment Scams:  Unfortunately, these types of crimes did not end with the arrest of Bernie Madoff.  I have known several people who have fallen for these types of smooth-talking crooks.  One elderly couple we know lost nearly all their savings and were stunned when they discovered that "the nice young man" they trusted had actually stolen from them. This scam may start with a free-lunch seminar or some other special program set up under the guise of helping seniors find "low-risk" investments. People can be wiped out before they realize there is a problem.  Once again, stick with major investment firms, you bank or advisers whom you know very well.

If you believe you have been a victim of a thief or scammer, contact your local police department, sheriff's department or the prosecuting attorney's office.  Keep any evidence you have that will help them identify the person behind the scam.

Other scams that often target senior citizens are counterfeit drugs, funeral scams, anti-aging products, and deceitful practices involving financial services such as reverse mortgages.  Always discuss major outlays of money with other family members as well as trusted financial advisers.

Bottom line:  Be careful.  Be skeptical.  Rely on all those years of experience that have kept you safe during your younger days.  You do not want to give away your hard-earned savings to criminals.

Whether you are already retired or about to retire, you may also enjoy reading the information on my retirement blog.  It contains information about where to retire, financial planning, medical concerns, changing family issues, etc:

http://www.baby-boomer-retirement.com

Sources of information about scams:

http://www.ncoa.org/enhance-economic-security/economic-security-Initiative/savvy-saving-seniors/top-10-scams-targeting.html

AARP Bulletin, Fall, 2013.

Photo is courtesy of www.morguefile.com

Scam Alerts for 2014

Every year, crooks from around the world go out of their way to try to find new ways to cheat people out of their hard-earned money.  The type of people who initiate these scams can range from local small-town contractors to international terrorist groups.  These people can also try to cheat us in a multitude of ways.  They may make a personal appeal, use a robo-call phone system, or go on a computer phishing expedition.  They might put a virus on your computer.

However they attempt to cheat us, we want to be prepared and know about the variety of tricks they may choose to use.  Here are some of the scams you need to watch out for in 2014:

Scam Alerts

*  If you used a credit or debit card in a Target Store anywhere in the United States in late November or the first half of December, 2013, you need to watch your statements carefully.  A foreign group was able to steal 40,000,000 credit card numbers.  It is possible that some PIN numbers were also captured.  Many of the cards are already for sale on international websites. To avoid problems, you may want to change your PIN number and/or ask that your card be replaced.  In addition, you should watch your statements carefully to avoid fraudulent charges.  If you are especially concerned, you may also want to enroll in a credit monitoring service to make sure your account information is not used to open new accounts.

*  According to the Federal Trade Commission, more people are defrauded by people promoting weight loss products than any other product category.  Talk to your doctor and read independent reviews before trying any miracle drug or supplement that claims it will help you lose weight easily and quickly.

*  Illegal or incompetent contractors often try to take advantage of people after a major weather event, such as an ice storm, hurricane, tornado or floods.  They may simply show up at your door and claim that your homeowner's association sent them, or that they were working on other homes in the neighborhood and noticed that your home needed work, too.  They may ask for large deposits, but do little or no work before they disappear.  Ask for referrals before hiring any contractor and verify, verify, verify.

*  Watch out for phony subscription invoices in your email or mailbox.  If someone other than the publisher contacts you about renewing a subscription, contact the publisher to make sure it is legitimate.

As always, be skeptical of any unexpected contact by a stranger ... whether that contact is in person, through a phone call or an email.  Scammers use a wide variety of ways to trick you, and you do not want to be their next victim.

In addition, you may want to follow a website such as this one in order to stay up-to-date on new scams that are going around.  An educated consumer is much less like to be tricked!

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo of damaged home is courtesy of www.morguefile.com

Leasing a House? Watch Out For This Scam!

Recently I heard about a scam that takes advantage of people in an especially cruel way.  There are people who are advertising homes for lease when the people who are creating the ads do NOT own the property, nor do they have the authority to lease it out to someone else.

For example, someone may copy the photos from a house that is for sale and use those photos to create an advertisement saying that the home is for lease at a very reasonable price.  When people inquire about it, they are asked to complete an application that looks very official.  Then, they are sent a copy of a "lease" and asked to return it, along with a deposit of a Cashier's Check, a wire transfer or something similar.  In some cases they have even asked for the first month's rent in advance, in addition to a large deposit. 

However, when it comes time to move in, the people who are currently residing in the home have NO IDEA THAT SOMEONE ELSE BELIEVES THEY HAVE LEASED IT !!!

It can happen anywhere, and it can happen to intelligent, well-educated people.  Here is a true story that took place just a few days ago in Irvine, California ... a city that, according to the FBI, has one of the lowest crime rates for any city in the United States:

http://www.bubblews.com/news/2458879-housing-scam

I interviewed the author of that article for more details.  She told me that her neighbor not only lost his deposit, but he almost lost his current apartment, since he had given notice to the apartment complex that he was moving.  It was just by luck that he discovered that he had been scammed.

Some people have lost thousands of dollars to this scam ... which can be a heart-breaking loss to someone who has just barely accumulated enough money to pay the first months' rent and a deposit on a home they want to lease.

Nearly everyone knows someone who is leasing their residence, so it is important that we get the word out to as many people as possible about this horrible scam.  I would not want this to happen to a single person that I know!

(Photo credit:  www.morguefile.com)

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com