Blue Cross Warns Members of Phone Scams
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is warning its members of new phone scams in which callers attempt to obtain personal or insurance information. The fraudulent callers claim they are from a pharmacy network, and then offer to mail the member over-the-counter vitamins and ointments to a member’s home at no cost. These phone calls are not a part of a Blue Cross program. They appear to be a malicious or fraudulent attempt to gain personal information. We’ve also received reports of robocalls falsely claiming to be affiliated with Blue Cross in which callers are marketing insurance products or trying to collect personal information. Blue Cross is not working with these companies and does not share medical or prescription information with unauthorized third parties. Members should ask their health care providers if they have questions about their medications or medical supplies. If you receive a robocall that you believe is a scam, hang up immediately. Do not provide your personal information, and do not respond to any prompts. If you’re receiving scam calls on your cell phone, you may block the phone number of the robocalls that are contacting you.
Malicious or suspected robocallers and telemarketers can be reported to federal agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
Learn more about how Blue Cross works to keep your information safe and secure:
Photo credit: Tero Vesalainen
I got a call yesterday Spoke to a young guy about these exact things. He said “ My insurance company would be happy to cover a few of the over the counter items, during this time, and mail them directly to my home…. ( he told me my address, he had my email, obviously my phone number, and knew my birthdate) I told him I was skeptical
So please send me an email ….he didn’t!!!
Hi, Debi. Unfortunately, fraud attempts like these are currently on the rise given the circumstances. We’ve received reports that Medicare beneficiaries are being offered COVID-19 tests in exchange for personal details through telemarketing calls, social media platforms and door-to-door visits. Please contact us if you receive these kind of requests and be wary of anyone that asks for personal information and does not conduct the standard verification process that BCBSM would when speaking to our members. Here are some helpful tips to catch potential scams: mibluesperspectives.com/2020/03/30/phishing-attempts-rising-during-covid-19-pandemic/.
Thank you, Julie
If gotten phone calls from these idiots! Blocking their number is not enough because they will call you on a different number. I asked them not to call me several times. The last time I cursed someone out right after he mentioned his name! They better not call me again!
is there a way to report it? maybe keep track of all the numbers they use? how can we stop this? i have gotten about 3 calls a day. over the past several days.
Hi Rebecca.
If you suspect these calls are fraudulent, there are instructions for how to report them here: https://www.bcbsm.com/health-care-fraud/index.html Thank you, Candice
What if you got one of these calls & I provided medical information
Hi Kim. Thank you for reaching out and bringing this to our attention. We know these calls can be a nuisance and sometimes scary, and we’d like to help. You can report suspected fraud here: https://www.bcbsm.com/health-care-fraud/index.html Thank you, Candice
How can I make the calls stop? The Group Plan Pharmacy calls me from different numbers all day long?
You can report suspected fraud here: https://www.bcbsm.com/health-care-fraud/index.html. A fraud specialist can help answer any questions you have about fraud and give you tips on how to prevent it from happening. Thank you, Candice
what should I do if I already received a call? and what should I do if they were provided information? The caller actually gave me my info, and told me what type insurance I had so I thought it was real.
Hi Jennita. Our fraud specialists are here to help. Please contact us at https://www.bcbsm.com/health-care-fraud/index.html so we can take next steps with you. Thank you, Candice
I receive atleast 5 calls and day I have RoboKiller so the calls don’t even make it through however, when I did answer a call the man argued with me telling me it was his job as part of my insurance and that he would continue to call every day so I blocked them! I’m tired of it!
I think I may have been by someone trying to sale me insurance by phone how can I find out if I actually have. health insurance now or if I was an idiot and they now how my information
Hi Angela,
Thanks for bringing this to our team’s attention. We’d like to look into the call you received further. You can report suspected fraud here: https://www.bcbsm.com/health-care-fraud/index.html
Thank you. The number of ROBO call and unknown number are overwhelming and so freightening for people who respond to them.
If I do not recognize a call number I do not answer——if it is important, the caller will leave a message. Most often no message is left.
You must advocate and protect yourself.
Thanks for posting this. Just got this call. I guess they don’t know I actually have Blue Cross Blue Shield? Just a random guess?
That is likely the case, Russ. We protect the privacy of our member’s information in a number of ways in our enterprise, which you can learn more about from our Online Privacy Practices site.